on the reverse. Surprisingly, considering the huge variety of coins of other denominations produced during his reign between 1625 and 1649, hardly any halfpennies were minted during the reign of King Charles I. The most common issue was produced at the Tower mint and simply had a rose on both sides of the coin. The other issue was produced at the Aberystwyth mint, and had a rose on one side and plumes on the reverse. The final silver halfpennies were produced under the auspices of the Commonwealth. Commonwealth halfpennies were extremely plain, having no inscription on either side, but a shield charged with a St George's cross on the obverse, and the Irish harp on the reverse. Base-metal halfpennies In the early years of the reign of King Charles II (1660–1685), there was a clear need for low-denomination coins to fund day-to-day purchases. The silver 1d and 2d coins issued in the first few years of the reign were being hoarded, and tradesmen in many parts of the country had taken to issuing private tokens in base metal; while this was an offence, in practice penalties were minimal and the government appreciated the need for such coinage which was not available legally. A problem with the production of low-value coins is that if the face value is less than the cost of production (including the metal) then the exercise is done at a loss and the coins may be clipped or melted down for their metal content; if the face value is higher, counterfeit coins begin to appear. The Mint was not ready to produce copper coins until 1672; by that time Maundy-type small silver (1d–4d) coins were being produced and were circulating widely, so no copper pennies were produced, although a Royal Proclamation in August 1672 decreed that halfpennies and farthings would be issued, and that they would have a face value equal to the value of the metal less the cost of producing them. The new coins were legal tender up to a total value of six pence, and depicted Britannia (modelled by the Duchess of Richmond) on the reverse. It was soon discovered that the Mint was incapable of producing the copper blanks needed for the new coins, and these eventually were imported from Sweden; to facilitate the process, the Customs Duty on the import of the metal was waived. Further delays ensued, caused not least by