Rare Piece of Money from 1600s Could Be Worth $300,000
2021-10-25
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1A rare piece of metal money made in the 1600s in the New England area of the U.S. could be sold for $300,000.
2The coin is to be sold at an auction sale in London next month.
3The silver coin was minted in 1652 in Boston, Massachusetts.
4"To mint" means to make, or strike, a coin out of metal.
5Coin experts consider it to be the best example of about 40 such coins known to still exist.
6The business holding the sale is Morton and Eden Limited.
7It issued a statement on Wednesday.
8It said the coin was recently found in Britain inside a candy container that held hundreds of old coins.
9James Morton is the coin specialist for the auctioneer -- the business holding the sale.
10He called the New England coin the "star of the collection."
11"I could hardly believe my eyes when I realized that it was an excellent example of a New England shilling, struck by John Hull in 1652 in Boston for use as money by early settlers in the Massachusetts Bay Colony," Morton said in a statement.
12John Hull was responsible for producing North America's first silver coins.
13The Massachusetts General Court appointed Hull as Boston mintmaster in 1652.
14The mint was considered treasonous by King Charles II.
15It stopped operating in 1682, the auctioneer's statement said.
16The recently discovered coin has a simple design.
17It has the letters NE, for New England, on one side.
18On the other side is the Roman number for 12.
19That was the number of pennies in a shilling.
20Jim Bailey is a coin expert in Rhode Island.
21He called the shilling "a phenomenal discovery."
22Bailey added that the coin has great "eye appeal."
23The coin belongs to Wentworth "Wenty" Beaumont.
24Beaumont's father found it in a container in his study at the family home in northern England.
25Beaumont's ancestor, William Wentworth, was an early settler of New England.
26He is thought to have arrived in the Colonies in 1636.
27He likely received the coin when it was new.
28The Wentworths became a well-known family in New Hampshire.
29The online sale includes several other early American coins.
30It is set to take place November 26.
31I'm Ashley Thompson.
1A rare piece of metal money made in the 1600s in the New England area of the U.S. could be sold for $300,000. 2The coin is to be sold at an auction sale in London next month. 3The silver coin was minted in 1652 in Boston, Massachusetts. "To mint" means to make, or strike, a coin out of metal. Coin experts consider it to be the best example of about 40 such coins known to still exist. 4The business holding the sale is Morton and Eden Limited. It issued a statement on Wednesday. It said the coin was recently found in Britain inside a candy container that held hundreds of old coins. 5James Morton is the coin specialist for the auctioneer -- the business holding the sale. He called the New England coin the "star of the collection." 6"I could hardly believe my eyes when I realized that it was an excellent example of a New England shilling, struck by John Hull in 1652 in Boston for use as money by early settlers in the Massachusetts Bay Colony," Morton said in a statement. 7John Hull was responsible for producing North America's first silver coins. The Massachusetts General Court appointed Hull as Boston mintmaster in 1652. The mint was considered treasonous by King Charles II. It stopped operating in 1682, the auctioneer's statement said. 8The recently discovered coin has a simple design. It has the letters NE, for New England, on one side. On the other side is the Roman number for 12. That was the number of pennies in a shilling. 9Jim Bailey is a coin expert in Rhode Island. He called the shilling "a phenomenal discovery." Bailey added that the coin has great "eye appeal." 10The coin belongs to Wentworth "Wenty" Beaumont. Beaumont's father found it in a container in his study at the family home in northern England. 11Beaumont's ancestor, William Wentworth, was an early settler of New England. He is thought to have arrived in the Colonies in 1636. He likely received the coin when it was new. The Wentworths became a well-known family in New Hampshire. 12The online sale includes several other early American coins. It is set to take place November 26. 13I'm Ashley Thompson. 14The Associated Press reported this story. Ashley Thompson adapted it for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor. 15_____________________________________________________________ 16Words in This Story 17auction -n. a public sale at which things are sold to the people who offer to pay the most; -v. to hold a public sale at which things are sold to the person offering the most 18mint -v. to make coins out of metal -n. a place where money, especially coins, are made 19candy -n. a sweet food made with sugar or chocolate 20shilling -n. a British coin used before 1971 that was equal to 1/20th of a British pound 21mintmaster -n. a person who supervises a mint 22phenomenal -adj. very good or great; unusual in an impressive way 23We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.