1 Farthing - George III 1st issue (1771–1775)
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Year | 1771–1775 |
| Denomination | 1 Farthing |
| Mint | Royal Mint · Llantrisant |
| Circulation | Circulating |
| Demonetised | 1817 |
| Composition | Copper |
| Weight | 4.930g |
| Diameter | 23.0mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Plain |
| Orientation | Coin alignment ↑↓ |
| Grade scale | UK (EF/UNC) |
Laureate and cuirassed bust of King George III right, legend around.
Seated figure of Britannia left, trident in left hand, olive branch in right, shield bearing the Union flag resting on left, legend around, date in exergue.
BRITANNIA
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Affiliate1 Farthing - George III 1st issue price history
Daily limit reached1 Farthing - George III 1st issue value by grade
Realised auction prices · ⭐ Pro Expand rows for individual sale records| Grade | Latest | Median | 30d Δ | All-time range | Sales (1yr) | Total sales | Last sale | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UNC | £240.00 🔒 | £360.00 (2) | – | £240.00 – £480.00 | 0 | 2 | 06-03-2016 | |
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| EF | £200.00 🔒 | £245.00 (2) | – | £200.00 – £290.00 | 0 | 2 | 03-03-2013 | |
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| VF | £140.00 🔒 | £140.00 (1) | – | £140.00 – £140.00 | 0 | 1 | 06-12-2015 | |
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| MS-64 | £280.00 🔒 | £280.00 (1) | – | £280.00 – £280.00 | 0 | 1 | 02-09-2018 | |
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| PR-65 | £950.00 🔒 | £950.00 (1) | – | £950.00 – £950.00 | 0 | 1 | 02-06-2013 | |
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About the 1771 1 Farthing - George III 1st issue
The 1771 1 Farthing - George III 1st issue is a circulating 1 farthing coin issued from 1771 to 1775, struck in copper. It weighs 4.93g and measures 23mm across. Reverse design: Seated figure of Britannia left, trident in left hand, olive branch in right, shield bearing the Union flag resting on left, legend around, date in exergue.
It is no longer legal tender (withdrawn 1817), so its value is to collectors only.
Common questions
How much is the 1771 1 Farthing - George III 1st issue worth?
Verified sold prices for the 1771 1 Farthing - George III 1st issue run from £140 to £950 across 5 grades, taking the median for each grade. Condition makes the difference, so check the grade table above before pricing one.
How many George III farthings were made between 1771 and 1775?
No reliable figure is published. CoinVarieties gives the recorded mintage for each date as unknown, and Coin Hunter lists the dates without numbers. The type is described as not rare, though it did little to relieve the shortage of small change.
Why are there no George III farthings between 1775 and 1799?
Wikipedia, citing Lobel, says the Royal Mint stopped striking copper in 1775 on the ground that enough legal halfpennies and farthings were in commerce. Counterfeits filled the gap, and the next official farthings came from Matthew Boulton's Soho Mint in 1799.
Is a 1773 farthing legal tender?
No. A proclamation of 5 December 1817, printed in the London Gazette, declared that Mint halfpennies and farthings issued under proclamations before 26 July 1797 should no longer pass, and told holders to bring them to the Mint by 31 December 1817.
Who designed the 1771 farthing?
The designer is not firmly recorded. Wikipedia, citing Lobel, says the obverse bust was designed by Richard Yeo or Thomas Pingo. The seated Britannia reverse was carried over from earlier farthings with no significant change.
How do I identify the 1771 1 Farthing - George III 1st issue?
Check the weight 4.93g and diameter 23mm and the metal (copper) against the specification table on this page. The reverse design is described above.
History and design
George III came to the throne in 1760, but his first farthings were not issued until 1771, the year Parliament made counterfeiting copper coin a felony. By then lightweight forgeries of halfpennies and farthings were common, and Wikipedia notes that the new law had little effect: good coins were melted down to make imitations, though the farthing was copied less than the halfpenny.
The Tower Mint struck farthings dated 1771, 1773, 1774 and 1775, then stopped making copper altogether on the ground that enough legal coin was already in commerce. No number struck is recorded for any date. The next official farthings were Matthew Boulton's, struck at Soho in 1799. Wikipedia gives this issue a weight of 4.3 to 5.3 g and a diameter of 23 to 24 mm; Royal Mint Museum examples weigh between 4.77 g and 5.22 g.
The obverse shows a laureate bust of the king facing right with GEORGIVS III REX. Wikipedia, citing Lobel, attributes the bust to Richard Yeo or Thomas Pingo. The reverse keeps the seated Britannia of earlier reigns, with spear, olive branch and shield, BRITANNIA around and the date in the exergue below. As on all copper farthings before 1799, the denomination does not appear, so the value is told by size.
The Royal Mint Museum records a plain edge and the coin's two sides set upside down to each other (a 180 degree die axis).
Varieties and errors
Tony Clayton and Coin Hunter both list two 1773 varieties: one with no stop on the reverse and one with no stop after REX. Proofs dated 1771 also exist. The Royal Mint Museum's proof, recorded in its 1874 and 1906 collection catalogues, has a 360 degree die axis, where the currency coins have 180 degrees.
Collecting notes
Contemporary counterfeits are the main trap, since Wikipedia records that the copper of this period was widely melted down for lightweight imitations. Weigh any example and compare it with the 4.3 to 5.3 g range of genuine coins. On 1773 coins, read the stops around the legends for the two listed varieties.
These coins did not last into the Victorian period. A proclamation of 5 December 1817, printed in the London Gazette, ended the currency of all Mint halfpennies and farthings issued before 26 July 1797, after an Order in Council of 1814 had already brought in considerable quantities for exchange. The next issue is the 1799 Soho farthing.
Sources
The history, design, varieties and collecting notes on this page are drawn from these sources. Prices come from recorded sales, not from them.
- History of the British farthing, Wikipedia (read 12 Oct 2026)
- Farthings, Tony Clayton, Coins of the UK (read 12 Oct 2026)
- Bronze farthing of George III, 1775 (DZSWS:2004.189.4), Wiltshire Museum, via Museum Data Service (read 12 Oct 2026)
- George III farthing, 1771 (RMM 1078), with proof RMM 1077 and farthings of 1773 and 1775 (RMM 1079 to 1082), The Royal Mint Museum, via Museum Data Service (read 12 Oct 2026)
- Great Britain 1774 farthing, CoinVarieties (read 12 Oct 2026)
- London Gazette issue 17317, pages 2650 to 2651 (proclamation of 5 December 1817 on the copper coin), The London Gazette (read 12 Oct 2026)
- Values of Farthings, Tony Clayton, Coins of the UK (read 12 Oct 2026)
- Coin values by year, George III (year pages 1771, 1773, 1774 and 1775, read one by one), Coin Hunter (read 12 Oct 2026)
- Great Britain 1771 farthing (and the 1773 and 1775 pages), CoinVarieties (read 12 Oct 2026)
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