Halfpenny (British pre-decimal coin)
The British pre-decimal halfpenny,, once abbreviated ob., was a denomination of sterling coinage worth 1/480 of one pound, 1/24 of one shilling, or 1/2 of one penny. Originally the halfpenny was minted in copper, but after 1860 it was minted in bronze. In the run-up to decimalisation, it ceased to be legal tender from 31 July 1969. The halfpenny featured two different designs on its reverse during its years in circulation. From 1672 until 1936 the image of Britannia appeared on the reverse, and from 1937 onwards the image of the Golden Hind appeared. Like all British coinage, it bore the portrait of the monarch on the obverse.
Illustrated Chips comic in 1896, sold for a halfpenny
A 1937 halfpenny (reverse), depicting the Golden Hind
£sd, spoken as "pounds, shillings and pence", is the popular name for the pre-decimal currencies once common throughout Europe. The abbreviation originates from the Latin currency denominations librae, solidi, and denarii. In the United Kingdom, these were referred to as pounds, shillings, and pence.
A sampler in the Guildhall Museum of Rochester illustrates the conversion between pence and shillings and shillings and pounds.
Old till in Ireland, with "shortcut" keys in various £sd denominations (lower numbers) and their "new pence" equivalent (upper numbers)
Toy coin, which teaches children the value of a shilling
Carolingian denarius