The Frank Stephenson Collection of Pennies : Signature Sales

Frank was raised in a County Durham pub owned by his parents and it was here that his fascination with coins started. As a small boy, and then a young man, he would examine the contents of the till and remove any coins he liked the look of (sometimes with his parents knowledge) for his collection. Bun head Pennies were still in circulation and he craved those as well as nice condition coins. One of those coins is offered for sale in this collection and that is the 1935 halfcrown that he took from the Royal Oak till in the 60s. A young family and busy life as a coal miner and colliery undermanager meant his hobby was largely forgotten until his retirement.

From 2002 until his death he built an outstanding collection of both Halfcrowns and Pennies with the aid of his son John, who is a coin and medal dealer in the North of England. There is a secondary collection of bronze Farthings and Halfpennies which is largely complete for currency issues, but those denominations were an aside to him.

Franks knowledge and passion for Pennies and Halfcrowns was boundless and his aim was to complete the Halfcrown collection by English Silver Coins reference numbers and the Penny collection with references to both Freeman and Gouby. Quality was always the first choice but rarity often demanded settling for what was available at the time. His great regret was in letting the Colin Adams 1726 halfcrown slip through his hands in the Spink sale that he acquired some of the Charles II halfcrowns from. That date eluded him and should probably be a lesson for all of us that the time to buy 'that coin' is when you see it!