And another coin

Posted on March 7, 2014 | Leave a comment

This is one of the easier coins to identify in my collection. Apologies for the poor photograph but it is also very worn.

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This is a French 50 centimes coin dated 1892 and very common.

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50 Hapa 1915

Posted on March 2, 2014 | 1 comment

Another unusual coin is this small coin stamped 50 HAPA 1915.

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On the reverse is the head of Peter I, the King of Serbia, with the words ПЕТАР I. КРАЉ СРБИЈЕ

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I believe the coin is silver and was issued in Serbia between 1904 and 1915 and is a 50 PARA.

I would love to believe this coin was collected by my great-uncle whilst he was serving in the Army during the First World War.

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George III sixpence 1819

Posted on March 1, 2014 | Leave a comment

Following on from previous posts about coins in my possession here is another one which I think is a George III sixpence stamped 1819.

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You can see it’s pretty grubby but I have found some similar examples online.

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More historic Welsh newspapers now online

Posted on February 10, 2014 | Leave a comment

More excellent news for those of us researching our Welsh ancestors. An additional 27 Welsh newspapers have been made available online thanks to the National Library of Wales (NLW):

“There is great excitement as we release 27 publications titles (200,000 pages) from the Library’s rich collection of Welsh Newspapers Online.

“Take a trip back in time from the comfort of your home or office and discover millions of freely available articles published before 1919.

“The resource now allows you to search and read over 630,000 pages from almost 100 newspaper publications from the National Library’s collection, and this will grow to over one million pages as more publications are added during 2014.

“Among the latest titles are Y Negesydd, Caernarvon and Denbigh Herald, Glamorgan Gazette, Carmarthen Journal, Welshman, and Rhondda Leader, not forgetting Y Drych, the weekly newspaper for the Welsh diaspora in America.

“The resource also includes some publications that were digitised for The Welsh Experience of World War One project.

“Browse the resource and discover unique information on a variety of subjects, including family history, local history and much more that was once difficult to find unless the researcher was able to browse through years of heavy volumes.”

You can find a list of all the newspapers, indicating those newly online, at the NLW website.

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Little leather wallet

Posted on February 7, 2014 | Leave a comment

I enjoyed writing about my exotic locket the other day so I thought I would share another little item in my possession. Again, I inherited this from my paternal grandmother, a small leather purse or wallet.

The brown leather is beautifully soft with a small tear. The initials E.T. have been punched on the front and it is hallmarked in four places – on the lock and two corners. It seems strange that such a small item should have to bear so many hallmarks.

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I think the hallmarks mean the following:

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Makers mark = GHJ
9 carat gold
Gold fineness = 375
Anchor = made in Birmingham
Date letter = u is for 1857

So I have a small leather and gold purse stamped with the initials ET. There’s a small loop on the back which suggests it could be worn on a belt.

I don’t have any known ancestors with these initials from this time so the item is a bit of a mystery. It contains a number of foreign coins which I’m going to write about over the coming days. Perhaps they belonged to someone who collected coins but I’m hoping there’s a more interesting story to tell!

 

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Tracing ancestors from British India

Posted on January 31, 2014 | 1 comment

Everytime I hear anything about British India, like when I posted about a recent press release the other day, it reminds me that I want to research some objects in my possession.

I inherited this locket from my paternal Grandmother. It features an Indian god on the front, the back is plain. Inside are two locks of hair behind glass. It measures about 4cm in height and doesn’t bear any hallmarks.

indian locket

I prised it open when I was much younger in the hope there would be a secret note stored behind the locks of hair, but there was nothing, except some re-used card.

I have absolutely no information about the locket, no way of dating it or knowing who it belonged to.

I also have an unusual coin.

half rupee coin

It’s a half rupee coin issued in 1840 by the East India Company.

Both of these items suggest I have an ancestor who visited India. But I’m unsure where to start….

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