"1652" Silver Threepence Pine Tree Wyatt Copy - Noe-M

Coin Details

Auction Record

$3,360 MS62 11-10-2018 Heritage Auctions

Description

A silver (AR) copy of the Massachusetts Pine Tree Threepence created by James W. Wyatt of London. Wyatt was a 19th-century English numismatic entrepreneur who produced copies and imitations of American colonial coinage for the collector market. His Pine Tree copies are cataloged within the Noe reference system that covers the entire Massachusetts silver coinage series. The original Pine Tree coinage was struck at the Hull Mint in Boston from 1667 to 1682, though all pieces bear the date 1652 by convention to maintain the fiction that coinage began under the more permissive governance of the Commonwealth period. The threepence was the smallest denomination, featuring the iconic pine tree on the obverse and the value "III" within a double ring on the reverse. Wyatt's copy, designated Noe-M, reproduces the general design of the Pine Tree Threepence but differs from genuine specimens in subtle details of die work, letter spacing, and tree style. The silver composition (AR, from the Latin argentum) matches the original metal, making Wyatt's copies potentially confusing to less experienced collectors. However, the differences become apparent upon careful comparison with authenticated originals. Wyatt copies are collected today as legitimate numismatic items in their own right. They represent the international market for American colonial coins that existed in 19th-century London, where British collectors developed significant interest in the coinage of their former colonies.

Rarity Notes

Scarce. Wyatt copies are collected as 19th-century numismatic artifacts. The Noe-M designation distinguishes this from genuine Pine Tree Threepence die varieties.

Cross References

Noe-M (Wyatt copy); Noe reference: Massachusetts Silver Coinage; Original: Pine Tree Threepence 1652 (1667-1682)