1760 Voce Populi Halfpenny. Nelson-17, Zelinka-Unlisted, W-13820. Rarity-9. Older Head. EF-40 (PCGS).

When offered in our August 2012 Philadelphia ANA Sale, this Discovery Coin for the die marriage was described as: "The most important offering ever in the Voce Populi series, an entirely new addition to the series, the first since the publication of Jerry Zelinka's 1976 publication in Colonial Newsletter. Before this discovery, 16 varieties of the Voce Populi halfpence were known. Of those, Nelson described 14 [sic, should be 12] in 1905. This piece most resembles Zelinka 2-A, Nelson-4, which shares a reverse die with this new discovery. The obverse is an entirely new die. The head punch is quite tall, like Nelson-4, but shows distinctive details: thinner and more pointed leaves in the laurel, an extra curlicue curl between the two hair ribbons and the back of the neck, a more Roman-style nose and higher, more prominent lips. The letter positions on the obverse are also distinctive, particularly notable at OP of POPULI, which is close together on Nelson-4 but shows a space between them on this new die. LI of POPULI are almost touching on Nelson-4 but show considerable space here. The tops of POPULI are also closer to the long denticles on this die than they are on Nelson-4. The reverse appears to be in a later state here, with the olive spray in a more abraded state, perhaps through die lapping or just wear. The quatrefoils are less crisp here than on Nelson-4, and the flaw left of the date appears more prominent. This particular specimen is, fortunately, high enough grade to make its status as a new variety easy to discern -- were this a more typical Voce Populi halfpenny with granular ground patina, it could seemingly pass as a Nelson-4 undetected to a casual glance. The surfaces are an even medium steel brown, a bit more gray on the reverse than the obverse. Light circulation marks are seen, some faint green encrustation in the harp, a couple of digs at the date, and a longer one atop CE of VOCE. The overall eye appeal is pretty nice for a Voce of this grade. Before this discovery, Nelson-16 was the rarest of the Voce Populi halfpence varieties, with six examples known as of its last auction appearance in the 2008 C4 sale. This pleasing rarity would be the capstone of an advanced Voce Populi collection, and without it no collection may be considered complete." Syd, ever the completist, took the last line to heart, making sure to acquire this newly discovered variety to keep his collection complete. With the acquisition of the "Nelson-17," he become the first person to have a complete set of all currently known Voce Populi halfpence and farthings, not including the enigmatic Nelson-5 halfpenny (which seems not to exist and may very well have been an erroneous entry by Nelson undoubtedly based on the work of Richard A. Hoblyn, whose variety research Nelson had utilized for the published variety listings). Serious students of this small but charming series of Irish coppers will undoubtedly compete fiercely for this coin, one that remains unique after more than a decade.

PCGS# 262. NGC ID: 2AUC.

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From the Sydney F. Martin Collection. Earlier ex A. Ganter Collection; Dix Noonan Webb's Sale 94, September 2011, lot 94, described as Nelson-4, Zelinka 2-A; John Agre, the discoverer of this new die combination; our Philadelphia ANA Sale, August 2012, lot 11153.