Farthings & pence. Late Victorias, 1806 George III and an 1890s 5C piece from Hong Kong just for giggles.
Half-crowns. I remember feeling as rich as Croesus if I was given one of these and a ten bob note was wealth beyond the dreams of avarice.
Couple of silver 3d & a half sovereign.
Some wooden 3d & tanners (1).
Hardly in Smaug's league, but just in case the Faragists decide to take this whole 1950s shtick all the way.
It's utterly impractical and (whisper it) a bit romantical, but the thing that I miss is the sense of history and a connection with the past in your pocket. You could fish out a handful of small change and be handling coins that had been in circulation for well over a hundred years, possibly longer, with a huge variety of designs showing the profiles of two or three Emporers, the odd Empress and any number of plain old Kings. Now? Well a few pictures of Brenda and the designs? Oh, merciful heavens! Welcome to the kindergarten. Would I go back? Nah, decimal is a sensible system, but ...
(1) Why tanner? *Possibly* because some several hundred years ago they were nick-named "Simons" after a Master of the Mint of that name and from the Biblical
quote,"... the apostle lodged with
one Simon, a tanner." (Acts 9:43; 10:6,32). Never let it be said our ancestors couldn't come up with a good bit of word play.
ETA.
In case you're wondering I *do* have a use for all that scrap metal. Stacks of pennies, ha'pennies, two-bob bits & shillings make for excellent dihedral jigs when assembling the wings of model aircraft,