{{Short description|16th-century English coin}} {{Infobox coin | Denomination = Three farthing | Country = | Value = 3/4 of a [[Penny (British pre-decimal coin)|penny]] | Unit = | Mass_g = | Mass_troy_oz = | Mass_grain = | Mass_ounce = | Mass_special = <!-- used for specialized formatting (eg. multiple cladding of same coin)--> | Gold_troy_oz = | Silver_troy_oz = | Diameter_mm = 14 | Diameter_inch = | Diameter_special = <!-- used for specialized formatting, or adding references to infobox--> | Thickness_mm = | Thickness_inch = | Thickness_special = <!-- used for specialized formatting, or adding references to infobox--> | Edge = | Composition = | Years of Minting = <!--{{Start date| 1561 }}–{{End date|1582}}--> | Mintage = <!-- used with single issue coins, or the total for the series if known --> | Mint marks = | Circulation = | Catalog Number = <!-- or | Catalogue Number = --> | Obverse = File:1575 Three farthings obverse.jpeg | Obverse Design = | Obverse Designer = | Obverse Design Date = | Obverse Discontinued = | Obverse2 = | Obverse2 Design = | Obverse2 Designer = | Obverse2 Design Date = | Obverse2 Discontinued = | Obverse3 = | Obverse3 Design = | Obverse3 Designer = | Obverse3 Design Date = | Obverse3 Discontinued = | Obverse4 = | Obverse4 Design = | Obverse4 Designer = | Obverse4 Design Date = | Obverse4 Discontinued = | Reverse = File:1575 Three farthings reverse.jpeg | Reverse Design =Royal arms over a cross with the date above | Reverse Designer = | Reverse Design Date = | Reverse Discontinued = | Reverse2 = | Reverse2 Design = | Reverse2 Designer = | Reverse2 Design Date = | Reverse2 Discontinued = | Reverse3 = | Reverse3 Design = | Reverse3 Designer = | Reverse3 Design Date = | Reverse3 Discontinued = | Reverse4 = | Reverse4 Design = | Reverse4 Designer = | Reverse4 Design Date = | Reverse4 Discontinued = }}
The silver '''three-[[Farthing (British coin)|farthing]]''' ({{frac|3|4}}[[Penny|d]]) coin was introduced in [[Elizabeth I of England|Queen Elizabeth I]]'s third and fourth coinages (1561–1582), as part of a plan to produce large quantities of coins of varying denominations and high metal content. It was worth {{frac|16}} [[English shilling|shilling]], or {{frac|320}} [[pound sterling]].
The [[obverse]] shows a left-facing bust of the queen, with a rose behind her and the legend <small>E D G ROSA SINE SPINA</small> – Elizabeth, [[by the grace of God]] a rose without a thorn – while the reverse shows the royal arms with the date above the arms and a [[mint mark]] at the beginning of the legend reading <small>CIVITAS LONDON</small> – [[City of London]], the [[Royal Mint|Tower Mint]].
The three-farthings coin closely resembles the [[Three halfpence (English coin)|three-halfpence]] coin, differing only in the diameter, which is {{cvt|14|mm}} for an unclipped coin, compared to {{cvt|16|mm}} for the three-halfpence.
All the coins are [[hammered coinage|hammered]], except for the extremely rare [[milled coinage|milled]] three-farthings of 1563, of which only three examples are known to exist.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Coins of the UK - Three Farthings |url=http://www.coins-of-the-uk.co.uk/threq.html |access-date=2022-09-16 |website=www.coins-of-the-uk.co.uk}}</ref>
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== References == <references />
{{Coins of England}}
[[Category:Coins of England]] [[Category:Tudor England]] [[Category:16th century in economic history]]
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