4 Pence - William IV

Reverse

Seated figure of Britannia right, trident in left hand, shield in right hand, denomination around, date in exergue.

Script: Latin

Lettering:
FOUR PENCE
1836

Engraver: William Wyon

Edge

Reeded

Note: plain varieties exist

Comment

The standard weight of this coin was 2/33 troy ounce or 29.1 grains.

Since the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660, production or fourpence pieces or groats was irregular at best. Towards the end of William IV's reign, they were reintroduced to general circulation. There are some reports stating that they were initially struck for use in British Guiana where they were equivalent to 1/4 guilder and others suggest that the groat returned to domestic circulation in 1836 but in either case they were the only silver coin to bear the figure of Britannia on the reverse.

According to various sources, the fourpence or groat was given the nickname 'Joey' after Joseph Hume, MP for Weymouth, Dorset, who successfully campaigned for the reintroduction of the groat in 1836. It is said that the average handsome cab fare in London at the time was fourpence and if the passenger tendered a sixpence, the cabbies would often either keep the twopence as a gratuity or give 16 half farthings in return.

Interesting fact

Price

Date	Mintage	VG	F	VF	XF	AU	UNC
1836	4253000	-	-	-	-	-	-
1837	962200	-	-	-	-	-	-

Values in the table are based on evaluations by sales realized on Internet platforms. They serve as an indication only for 4 Pence - William IV 1836-1837 coin.