Soldini were known colloquially as 'galley-halfpence' or 'galyhalpens', and were regarded as a nuisance by the government of 15th and early 16th century England. Arriving in large numbers as a by-product of the Venetian galley fleets which docked at major ports such as Southampton, Sandwich, London and King's Lynn, they circulated widely as halfpennies due to the lack of 'official' small change.
