Commonwealth of England. Although the Parliament of Scotland proclaimed Charles II King on 5 February 1649, he did not strike coins in Scotland until 1664. His silver denominations were multiples of the merk. At this time, the Scottish one merk coin was similar to an English shilling, but it was valued at 13s 4d Scots. In 1677, Charles II introduced a copper bawbee, valued at 6 pence Scots, with a crowned thistle on the reverse in place of the figure of Britannia on the copper coins he struck in England. James VII of Scotland reverted to silver coins with denominations in shillings, now with the weights adjusted to reflect an exchange rate of 13 shillings Scots to 1 shilling sterling. 1707–1710 recoinage Following the 1707 union between the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England, the Scottish silver (but not gold nor copper) coinage was replaced with new silver coins, with the aim of creating a common currency for the new Kingdom of Great Britain as required by the Treaty of Union. The exercise was conducted under the guidance of Sir Isaac Newton, who had previously directed the recoinage in England some years earlier in his role as Warden of the Mint (and subsequently as Master of the Mint). Despite fluctuations in the exchange rate since 1603, and a 1697 proclamation setting the ratio at 13:1, a 12:1 ratio (one shilling Scots to one penny sterling) was applied to the recoinage, although compensation was paid. The new coinage was made using Troy weights (12 Troy ounces to the pound), rather than the traditional Scots weights (16 Troy ounces to the pound). Coins were minted in both London and Edinburgh, the latter inscribed with the letter 'E' under the bust of the monarch to permit them to be distinguished. Under the supervision of moneyers from the Tower Mint in London, a weight of 103,346 Troy pounds in crowns, half-crowns, shillings, and sixpences were minted at the Edinburgh Mint with a value of £320,372 12s, equivalent to US$20.5 million (£17.1 million) at 2017 average silver prices and exchange rates. This 12:1 ratio is reflected in the fact that sgillinn, which originally meant shilling, became the Scottish Gaelic word for a penny sterling, and bonn-a-sia which literally means "coin of six" became the word for a halfpenny. Following decimalisation in 1971, sgillinn became and remains the Scottish Gaelic word for a new