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Having a look at the non coinage works of Benedetto Pistrucci. I thought it might be interesting to see how his training as a cameo engraver might influence his work on coin dies.

Luxury. We used to DREAM of an apostrophe......

On a festive note:

But you try and tell the young people today that... and they won't believe ya'.

ooh...new one on me- picture? Unknown but not unloved....

I know this is a generalisation, but 17th century copper proofs/patterns and silver halfpennies of CII to WmIII are often found very worn , so must have gone into circulation for some reason, but this is much less evident with the 18th century equivalents which are nearly always in much better condition.

I posted this some time back . It just goes to show what can go through your fingers which you later regret. Talking of what was, and was not released into circulation , during the war my mother picked up in change a brass 3d piece, which to her was just a 3d bit to spend ,she at that time had absolutely no thoughts at all of coin collecting , as after all there was a war on and she was a teenager with thoughts only of spending money . Anyway, she just glancing at the coin and noticed that the tails side was different to the normal 3d, being as she said, different with more of a stylised design than normal , but then gave the coin no more thought, and passed it to the bus conductor to pay for her fare . Well, many years later , after starting to collect coins, she found out about the Edward viii 3d piece with the stylised reverse, and knew that was what she had held in her hand all those years before , she felt sick, thinking if only I had known of there existence at the time, and if only she had turned the coin over she might have noticed that it was an Edward viii 3d, and not the George vi . I believe these were all pattern coins, and were not supposed to be released into circulation. God knows what there worth today, maybe one of you on here has one , let us know. It makes me wonder what may have passed through my hands without my knowing about its rarity . Terry

I can't believe nobody noticed and collected this 1865 coronetted head pattern penny (F272) before about 80 years of wear. Incredible - link