Playing around with George - 1799 Georgius III Halfpenny - 2 questions - Strike & Ship

TokenTinker

Just a bit of fun with a 1799 GEORGIUS III Halfpenny. I do have 2 questions about this coin though.
OBVERSE: There appears to be possible evidence of an underlying strike between the R & E of REX (120 degrees) and to left of Effigy ribbon (260 degrees). Could just me a malformed planchet, debris on the obverse when struck or damage post-strike. Any notions?
REVERSE: The ship that appears on the reverse at Britannia's knee is shown differently on different strikes. I'm curious about this one as it appears to be a frigate in 1/4 port/stern profile and I detect a hint of smoke on the starboard side (if I'm correct about the orientation of the device). Might this be a salute fired on weighing anchor? I'm curious because the form of a salute was very important and the Naval aspect of the Napoleonic wars (Nelson and Broke and all of that fantastic lot) played heavily in British pride and morale (as well as did the East India Company relying upon the prowess of England at sea).

OchoReales

I'm certainly no expert on British coinage but your coin suffers the effects of emvironmental damage (possibly from land burial). I BELIEVE that what you see MIGHT be the effects of the deterioration of the copper, caused by the reaction of the acidity in soil. Then again, I MIGHT be wrong!

TokenTinker

It's certainly taken a battering and been treated to the elements, Ocho, but the shape of the protrusion by the ribbon seems too well formed to dismiss some other explanation. I, of course, may just be seeing what I want to see, though.

JimK

I can't answer your questions, but I do think that is an excellent presentation.
Well done!

Jim

TokenTinker

Thank you James. Kind indeed!

TokenTinker

Now - is there anyone out there who can answer the questions about this strike?

RobP

It looks like environmental damage in all cases. The die axis is inverted, so any clashed dies can be eliminated because the left hand mark coincides with the middle of the field to the right of the B and the mark between R & E equates to half way between the N & I of Britannia. With regard to the ship, Peck listed 5 varieties of ship to which can be added a 6th (7 raised gunports), but the truth is that there are many sub-types because it appears the ship was entered individually on each die. Normally it is a ship sailing to the right, so any apparent variations on this theme are likely to be due to corrosion.

TokenTinker

Beautifully put, Rob. Thank you. You've also pointed out that if I'm to use the compass as an orientation tool then I'd better have my die axis represented.