1½ Pence - William IV Colonial issue (1834–1837)

One row for each year the 1½ Pence - William IV Colonial issue was struck. Prices are medians of verified sold listings matched to that year from the listing: circulated is worn condition up to Extremely Fine, uncirculated is About Uncirculated or better. A count in brackets means fewer than three sales behind the figure; a grey figure marked "type" is the median across every year, shown where that year has no sale of its own yet; years with no sales yet fill in as sales are recorded. Most types have been searched year by year only since October 2026, so later years are still filling in. Use the grade table below for a price by condition across all years.

About the 1834 1Half Pence - William IV Colonial issue

The 1834 1Half Pence - William IV Colonial issue is a circulating 1½ pence coin issued from 1834 to 1837, struck in 92.5% silver. It weighs 0.71g and measures 12.3mm across. Reverse design: Crowned denomination above date within oak wreath.

Mintage figures are recorded for 4 years between 1834 and 1837, 1,623,000 coins in all. 1837 is the scarcest date, with 31,000 struck. It is no longer legal tender, so its value is to collectors only.

Common questions

History and design

The three halfpence of William IV was a colonial coin. Wikipedia describes it as made for circulation in British colonies, mainly Ceylon and the West Indies, which used sterling coin and had no monetary policy of their own; that is why it counts as part of the British series. Tony Clayton states that it never circulated in the United Kingdom. The denomination had not been struck since Elizabeth I, and 1834 began the modern colonial series.

Clayton records that it passed for 4 stivers in Ceylon and for a quarter of a real in Jamaica, British Guiana and Trinidad. Jamaicans, Wikipedia says, called it a quatty, a quarter of a sixpence. William IV's coins are dated each year from 1834 to 1837. The type continued under Victoria until 1862, with a proof of 1870 closing the series.

The obverse carries the King's bare head facing right with the legend GULIELMUS IIII D G BRITANNIAR REX F D. The Royal Mint Museum credits William Wyon with William IV's coinage portraits, engraved from a bust by Francis Chantrey.

The reverse shows the figure 1½ beneath a crown and over the date, all within a wreath, a design Wikipedia dates to 1834 and which remained unchanged for the rest of the series. Clayton notes that the coin resembles the Maundy issues, which is one reason collectors treat it as part of the British series. It is struck in sterling silver with a plain edge.

Varieties and errors

Clayton's values page and Coin Hunter both list an 1835 coin with the 5 cut over a 4, alongside the normal 1835. No other varieties or mint errors are documented for the reign.

Collecting notes

The coin is only about 12 millimetres across, so a glass is needed to read the date and to spot the 1835/4 overdate.

For the same denomination with the Young Head of Queen Victoria, see the Victorian three halfpence. The William IV threepence was also struck for colonial use in these years.