19th Century Tokens, Warwickshire, Birmingham, Workhouse, Sixpence, 1813, frontal elevation of building, rev. arms, edge plain, 150.16g/6h (W 375). Minor rim nicks, otherwise fine with green patina, extremely rare; a previously unattested specimen of the largest copper coin ever issued in Great Britain £700-900

Illustration reduced. Although referred to in the latest literature as patterns never released for circulation, it seems likely, from the wear on the surviving specimens (of which several have appeared on the market over the years), that these coins did enter circulation for a limited time. Weighing five and a half ounces each, they owe their probable existence to the temporary low price of copper relative to silver at the time (cf. Noble I, lot 1921, note)