P. Scott Rubin:
The “Janus” 1776 Massachusetts Halfpenny is a unique coin that is believed to be a pattern for Massachusetts coinage. This is one of three mysterious issues connected with Massachusetts coinage that never went into production. There are more tall stories with these coins than there are facts. One of the beliefs is that the “Janus” coin was found with other material belonging to Paul Revere. However, no concrete facts support this. Walter Breen believed that all three coins were produced by the same individual and that, because Revere had no die-making experience, the somewhat unprofessional work seen on all three issues seem connected and may have been done by him. Breen also believed that some of the style used on Revere’s paper money engravings show similarity to these issues, of which the “Janus” 1776 Massachusetts Halfpenny is one.
The other two pattern issues are the 1776 Indian with Bow Province Halfpenny and the 1776 Pine Tree State Penny. All three of these coins are currently believed to be unique. The 1776 Indian with Bow Halfpenny is in the collection of the American Numismatic Society, and the 1776 Pine Tree Penny is in the collection of the Massachusetts Historical Society.
The “Janus” 1776 Massachusetts Halfpenny the only one of these three 1776 Massachusetts copper coins in private hands. It was last sold in November 1979 Bowers and Ruddy as part of the Johns Hopkins University’s Garrett Collection (lot 574 for $40,000). The coin had previously been owned by Matthew Stickney and James W. Ellsworth before John Work Garrett added it to his collection.
The really strange part of the story about this coin is its name. “Janus” was a two-faced mythical individual. However, the coin has three faces -- one too many for this unique piece of American numismatic history. An unusual element on the reverse of the 1776 “Janus” Massachusetts Halfpenny is the figure of Liberty seated on a Globe with a watchdog at her feet. This design was also used on the other two 1776 Massachusetts Patterns mentioned above. I am unaware of another use of this watchdog motif on any other American Colonial coinage.
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