Anne Bonny Pirate Doubloon (Tracker's GC)

This geocoin has an important mission.

It should be in my collection and enjoy me, remind me about my Friends.

Thank you Haedel 80 for a wonderful gift for me.

Arrgggh Matey! Anne Bonny sails once again!

From designer Chris Mackey comes our latest in a series of very cool pirate geocoins. This doubloon size gold coin pays tribute to the infamous pirate and her famous phrase "fight like a man or be hung like a dog".

Here are some design notes from Chris Mackey:
Anne Bonny (Cormac) was an Irish American illegitimate daughter of Lawyer William Cormac of Charlestown (now Charleston), South Carolina. When her mother died of typhoid fever her father soon attempted to wed her off to a local, but her defiant spirit put a quick end to that notion. Instead, she picked her own husband, a sailor by the name of John Bonny who spirited her away to New Providence in the Bahamas. The sea completely enchanted her and she was not a woman to sit idle as life passed by. She was besought with the life of sailors, pirates and privateers and soon found new excitement and romance with the pirate John "Calico Jack" Rackham. She quickly left her husband behind, joined Jack and set out to change history forever.

Together, Anne and Jack commandeered the Sloop William and set about pirating merchants ships. Anne was notorious for not holding back, but rather leaping into the fray as they swarmed onto merchant ships swinging her cutlass and firing her pistols into enemy ranks. Together, they quickly acquired substantial wealth and before long were high on the list of most wanted pirates. Privateer Captain Barnet was sent in pursuit of Bonny and crew and soon caught up to them at Negril Point in Jamaica. Bonny and a few others fought fiercely before finally being overwhelmed due to most of her crew being too drunk or cowardly to fight back against such overwhelming odds. One account says when she railed at her crew to come up on deck and fight like men some refused and she fired her pistol into their ranks and fought on alone. Despite her audacity she was finally overwhelmed and captured by the pirate hunter's boarding party and her entire crew was imprisoned. Calico Jack and all the men of the crew were strung up to be hung, but before they met their doom, Bonny stepped forward, bound in chains, and told Jack "Had you fought like a man, you need not been hang'd like a dog!" Bonny spent the following months imprisoned on account of being pregnant at the time. About the time she was to give birth she suddenly disappeared from all prison records. She was not executed, she was not listed as escaped and all record of her disappearance seemed highly suspicious. Some believe she escaped with aid from fellow pirates and resumed her career under a new name. Some believe she was ransomed by her father and returned to South Carolina to a more mundane life. Other theories remain, but no matter her escape, her name lives on in infamy.

In addition to her personal fame, the Crossed Swords Jolly Roger that flew from the ships she fought from became one of the most noted in nautical history and to this day remains one of the single most replicated pirate flags in the world. Her kind may never be seen again, but she will never be forgotten for the legend and mark she left behind.