The half crown coin is pre-decimal British coinage that ceased to be legal tender in 1970. However, British 'silver' coins up to this date in the reign of George VI (1946) are 50% silver (0.500 purity), which means that its worth as bullion is somewhat greater than its face value, which in modern decimal currency would be 12.5p. For size comparison, beside the half crown is a 1936 sixpenny piece (sixpence), from the reign of George V. This is another 50% silver coin, equivalent to 2.5p today (2015). A sixpence was a coin very familiar to children of the 1940s and 1950s, since it represented (for example) a bag of sweets or entrance to a Saturday matinee at the cinema. The sixpence was also known as 'a tanner'. Pre-decimal currency worked on a system of 12s, a number that can be divided by 2, 3, 4 and 6. Decimal currency, working in 10s, can be divided only by 2 and 5. Decimalisation was good for machines, but bad for the ability of the human brain to make calculations. Coin | Horizontal | Front View | Human Internal Organ | Human Brain
High Resolution JPEG Picture of The half crown coin is pre-decimal British coinage that ceased to be legal tender in 1970. However, British 'silver' coins up to this date in the reign of George VI (1946) are 50% silver (0.500 purity), which means that its worth as bullion is somewhat greater than its face value, which in modern decimal currency would be 12.5p. For size comparison, beside the half crown is a 1936 sixpenny piece (sixpence), from the reign of George V. This is another 50% silver coin, equivalent to 2.5p today (2015). A sixpence was a coin very familiar to children of the 1940s and 1950s, since it represented (for example) a bag of sweets or entrance to a Saturday matinee at the cinema. The sixpence was also known as 'a tanner'. Pre-decimal currency worked on a system of 12s, a number that can be divided by 2, 3, 4 and 6. Decimal currency, working in 10s, can be divided only by 2 and 5. Decimalisation was good for machines, but bad for the ability of the human brain to make calculations. [467591300] stock photo
