English and Indian obverse dies on Australian George V pennies

Posted on 10 December 2022

Australian predecimal coins do not exhibit many varieties, but the reign of George V exhibited a number of penny varieties due mostly to the use of two subtly different obverse dies. The Indian/Calcutta reverse die (commonly known as the Indian die) was created to strike pennies in India as the original English/London reverse die (commonly known at the London die) was not well suited to the presses in use at the Calcutta Mint. Both dies were subsequently used by Australian branch mints.

There are a number of small differences between the London and Indian dies that can be seen on even worn specimens:

Differences between the London and Indian penny dies

London die	Indian die
Second leg of N in OMN points between denticles	Second leg of N in OMN points at denticle
: of IMP: points at denticle	: of IMP: points between denticles
Leg of R of BRITT is shorter and straighter	Leg of R of BRITT is longer and more diagonal

The London and Indian dies were both used in a number of years, though the London die ultimately won out. Interestingly, both the London and Indian dies were used on the 1/12th shilling coins of Jersey.

Usage of the London and Indian penny dies 1911-1936

Year	London die	Indian die
1911	Yes	No
1912	Yes	No
1913	Yes	No
1914	Yes	No
1915	Yes	No
1916	No	Yes
1917	No	Yes
1918	No	Yes
1919	Yes	Yes
1920	Yes	Yes
1921	Yes	Yes
1922	Yes	Yes
1923	Yes	No
1924	Yes	Yes
1925	Yes	No
1926	Yes	No
1927	Yes	Yes
1928	Yes	No
1929	Yes	Yes
1930	Yes	Yes
1931	Yes	Yes
1932	Yes	No
1933	Yes	No
1934	Yes	No
1935	Yes	No
1936	Yes	No

Images provided by Museum Victoria and Museum Victoria under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International

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English and Indian obverse dies on Australian George V pennies