1 Penny, Pattern, Orange Free State, 1888
date: label: date made
content: 1888
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: One (1) penny coin, pattern
label: Description (Brief)
content: Orange Free State, 1888
label: Description (Brief)
content: Obverse Image: Shield within wreath, banner below.
label: Description (Brief)
content: Obverse Text: ORANJE VRYJSTAAT / GEDULD EN MOED / 1888
label: Description (Brief)
content: Reverse Image: Oak and laurel wreath.
label: Description (Brief)
content: Reverse Text: 1 PENNY
label: Description
content: In 1890 a German firm called Otto Nolte & Co minted this penny pattern coin in Berlin. The firm designed this sample coin with the hope of selling coins like it for use in the Orange Free State (a part of what is now South Africa). The Orange Free State was a self-governing republic of descendants of Dutch and other European immigrants known as Boers (Afrikaners), who colonized African land during the 1600s to 1800s. This pattern coin depicts a version of the Orange Free State coat of arms. It features an orange tree representing the Dutch Royal Family (the House of Orange) and three bugle horns—another symbol of that dynasty. The text on the coin reads ORANJE VRYJSTAAT, a misspelling for the Afrikaans name for the Orange Free State and GEDULD EN MOED, which means patience and courage. The Orange Free State never minted these coins and instead relied on its own banknotes as well as British and Dutch currencies for transactions.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place used
content: South Africa: Orange Free State
label: place made
content: Germany: Berlin
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: National Numismatic Collection
label: See more items in
content: South African Currency
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 2021.0039.0069
label: accession number
content: 2021.0039
label: catalog number
content: 2021.0039.0069
label: collector/donor number
content: 544-1
objectType: label: Object Name
content: coin
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: bronze (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: .17 cm x 3.04 cm; 1/16 in x 1 3/16 in