Nursery Wonders

The history of the English penny is not commonly known but is a vital part of our history and heritage! The first documented reference to the penny is dated 790 AD when the first British penny was minted in silver. The design of the penny frequently changed depicting the images of various rulers. The first Anglo-Saxon pennies depicted a cross on the reverse of the coin as a symbol of Christianity. These crosses were used as guidelines to cut the penny into halves and quarters - "cut coinage". The halfpenny (worth half the value of a penny) and farthing (worth a quarter, or a fourth, of the value of a penny) were then minted. The word farthing was derived from 'fourthing'. The penny changed from silver to copper in 1797 ( hence the colloquialism 'coppers') then changed to bronze in 1860 and copper plated steel in 1992. The Nursery Rhyme "Christmas is coming" can claim to be instrumental in maintaining our heritage in relation to the coinage of both the UK and the USA which also used the humble penny.

[Source rhymes.org.uk]