 1723 Rosa Americana Twopence Obverse Trial. Stop after REX. Br.92 (obverse type). Reverse with enigmatic ''S/27'' countermark. About Uncirculated. Bath metal. 169.0 gns. Constricted 28.9 mm. planchet. 1.9 - 2.0 mm. thick. Dark brown obverse, reverse somewhat lighter. Rounded and atypical edge. Short, high ring when struck. Unique and unpublished. When Mr. Ford thought about buying this piece he wrote to the seller, Bob White, on February 27, 1975:
''I have your coin, described by you as a ''Rosa Americana 2d Trial Strike #27''. I wish that I could be as sure as you are as to what it might be.
The piece is struck on a much smaller blank than that used for the normal Wood's R.A. Twopence. The planchet is hand filed, i.e., hand made; both the edge and the reverse display clear evidence of filing. The obverse is similar to, but not identical with, any known working die utilized for the Rosa Americana coinage.
I have shown the piece to two prominent authorities, one of whom has authored several texts relating to the American series. The author advised me not to buy the item 'at any price'. The other gentleman was not much more of a help; he suggested that it might be a balance weight. Wonderful!
Since I have to make up my own mind, I feel that I should own the coin, at least so that I can further study it in an effort to figure out exactly what it is. However, the thought bothers me that its potential value is limited because of the type of negative observations that it seems to receive. Therefore, I wonder if you could do a little something for me re the asking price.
I would be willing to 'shoot crap' to the tune of $400, taking the piece 'as is'. What do you think? Does the item have any kind of a history or pedigree?''
No reply seems to have been forthcoming that would shed further light on the origin of this trial. Sometime later, however, Ford showed the coin to Walter Breen who wrote the following short note about it (this and Ford's letter will be donated to the American Numismatic Society):
''Never saw this working die before--note pellet below M. It is evidently a die trial. The cmk [i.e., countermark] S/27 on reverse suggests: S = Standbrooke (one of 3 diecutters at the Tower Mint who furnished dies to Wm Wood), 27 = serial no. of this working die.''
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