Obverse

Uncrowned portrait of King George VI facing left, legend around.

Script: Latin

Lettering:
GEORGIVS VI D:G:BR:OMN:REX F:D:IND:IMP:
HP

Unabridged legend: Georgius VI Dei Gratia Britanniarum Omnium Rex Fidei Defensor Indiae Imperator

Translation: George the Sixth by the Grace of God King of all the Britains Defender of the Faith Emperor of India

Engraver: Thomas Humphrey Paget

Reverse

Three-masted ship sailing left, denomination above, date below.

Script: Latin

Lettering:
HALF PENNY
HP
1943

Engraver: Thomas Humphrey Paget

Edge

Plain

Mint

Royal Mint (Tower Hill), London, United Kingdom (1810-1975)

Comments

The standard weight of these pieces was 80 to the pound or one fifth ounce avoirdupois (871⁄2 grains).

The ship featured on the reverse design, which first appeared on the 1937 halfpenny pattern of Edward VIII, is based on Sir Francis Drake's Golden Hind, in which he became the first Englishman to circumnavigate the globe between 1577 and 1580.

This type uses a slightly re-worked reverse die for each year. The differences are very small and only the 1940 can be said to have genuine varieties, as three reverses can be found with this date. The image below shows these differences and is reproduced with the kind permission of Declan Magee and Numista member Sjoelund. Full details of the differences between all the reverses can be found in Freeman.