Report on a proposal by Charles Tunnah and William Dale to coin 1,000 tons of halfpence and farthings from an artificial metal similar to gold

Author: Isaac Newton

Source: MINT 19/2/435, National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, UK

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<435r>

To the most Hon^ble the Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer, Lord H. Treasurer of great Britain

May it please yo^r Lord^p

In obedience to yo^r Lord^ps Order of Reference upon the annexed Memorial of M^r Charles Tunnah & M^r William Dale for coyning in ten years a thousand Tunns of halfpence & farthings of an artificial metal which toucheth like ordinary gold & for cutting a pound weight averdupois into 32 pence: We humbly represent

That the selling blancht copper or making it for sale is forbidden by law upon pain of death because of its fitness to be used in counterfeiting the silver moneys: & for the same reason it may be of dangerous consequence to encourage the making of an artificial metall w^ch toucheth like gold & is used in making sword hilts & other wares in imitation of gold. The halfpence made of this metall & melted down with a little fine gold may make a composition very danger{illeg}|o|us for counterfeiting the gold moneys.

That in the last coinage of copper moneys an hundred Tunns per annum at the end of six years occasioned great complaints in P{illeg}|a|rliament so as to cause the coynage to be stopt for a year. And after another hundred Tunns were coined the nation was overstockt for four or five years. And therefore six hundred tunns may be deemed sufficient for y^e use of all England, whereof there seem to be about 500 Tunns already current.

That the secret {illeg}|o|f making this met{illeg}|al| being known only to the Petitioners, it has no known intrinsic valu{illeg}|e| or market price: whereas halfpence or|&| farthings (like other money) should be made of a metall whose price among Merchants is known, & should be c{illeg}|o|ined as neare as can be to that price including the charge of coynage.

And that the people are not nice & curious in taking good copper m{illeg}|o|ney, but may be imposed upon by money made of Princes metal instead of the metal here proposed: & that the cutting a pound weight into 32 pence may be a great temptation to coun{illeg}|t|erfeit such money

All w^ch reasons incline us to prefer a coynage of good copper according to the intrinsic value of the metal. But we most humbly submit our opinion to yo^r Lord^ps great wisdome.

Cra: Peyton

Is {Newton}

^[1]

^[1] Mint Office
23 Ian. 171 $\frac{3}{4}$ .