½ Penny Token (D
& H 7 - Lothian; Anderson, Leslie & Co.) |
 |
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| Obverse - |
The front view of a large building showing the main
entrance, dome and vane, with two wings surmounted by pointed pediments;
and in a small space beneath the building, WRIGHT DES. |
| In the exergue, |
NEW UNIVERSITY |
| Legend: |
EDINBURGH HALFPENNY PAY.E
BY ANDERSON LESLIE & CO 1797 |
|
| Reverse - |
View from the front of a gardener wearing a hat and
an apron, with an uprooted shrub in his left hand and a spade in his
right. A small planted hillock is shown behind him on the left. |
| Legend: |
NEU SEGNES JACEANT TERRÆ * ETIAM MONTES CONSERERE
JUVAT * |
|
| Edge:- Plain. |
| Diesinker. Wyon; manufacturer, Kempson. Ten cwts.
struck. Common. |
| D&H 6 is very rare and D&H 8 rare. The reverse
die of D&H 6 broke, hence the need for engraving D&H 7. D&H 8 contains a
slip in the reverse legend, reading TERRA for TERRÆ. |
| |
| Comments. Anderson. Leslie & Co. were seedsmen, nurserymen
and florists in Edinburgh, and hence the appropriateness of the reverse
design of a gardener at work. |
| |
| The obverse shows the University building, which at
the time of the token was the largest edifice in Scotland. The University
was founded by royal charter in A.D. 1582, and called the College of King
James, by the desire of James VI of Scotland. There was only one professor,
and he started teaching in A.D. 1583. It was not until A.D. 1720 or A.D.
1721 that anatomy and other branches of medical science began to be taught
systematically. Soon the talent of the tutors attracted students from all
over the world. Dr. Munro, the anatomist, was also professor of surgery;
while Drs. Sinclair, Rutherford, Plumer and Alston, laid the foundation
for didactic teaching which gained international recognition. |
|
| |
| On the 16th of November, 1789, the foundation stone
of the New College was laid, to replace the old buildings. The plan was
a square building with a large central area; the east front having the principal
entrance, as shown on the token, adorned with a dome and portico with six
large columns. The building contained a hall, library, and museum, and living
quarters for the principal and some of the professors; the structure being
one of the finest in Europe. Construction at first was rapid, but later
came to a standstill for lack of funds, and it remained unfinished for some
twenty years. Eventually a government grant enabled the work to be completed
about A.D. 1830, a few changes being made in the original plans. The tokens
show the building as first designed. |
| Commercial Coins 1787-1804., pp. 259-260 |
