Richard II, Henry IV & Henry V
Richard II (1377-99) Read
about Richard II
Groats
WMH-7530:
Richard II
Hammered Silver Medieval Groat. Group 1, London mint, initial
mark Cross Pattee, Spink 1678.
Lord Stewartby
states that whilst production of gold throughout the reign remained constant,
silver was somewhat erratic and far from
prolific. During the reign of Richard II
(even at the end of Edward III), and most definitely going through the
subsequent reign of Henry IV, silver was haemorrhaging out of England to the
Continent at an alarming rate which was compounded by the fact that the country
was far from awash with silver in the first place - the price of silver on the
Continent was greater than in England and cross-channel merchants were quick to
take advantage. A very nice grade coin
for issue – this
example was recently through Baldwins’ and really isn’t that much better. As in the Baldwins’ example, the regnal name is as clear as
anything. Rare coin. £1,050
WMH-8149:
Richard II Medieval
Hammered Silver Groat. Type II
(retrograde Z preceding FRANC), London mint, Spink 1679.
There was a distinct lack of available bullion at this period to make
coinage: Lord Stewartby
(English Coins 1180-1551, published 2009) states that ...during the reign of
Richard II (even at the end of Edward III), and most definitely going through
the subsequent reign of Henry IV, silver was haemorrhaging out of England to
the Continent at an alarming rate which was compounded by the fact that the
country was far from awash with silver in the first place - the price of silver
on the Continent was greater than in England and cross-channel merchants were
quick to take advantage. There are
recorded accounts showing the absolute dearth of both coinage in circulation
and available bullion during the reign of Richard II and Henry IV: in the
Annals of the Coinage of Great Britain, Rudding
recounts a licence issued to D.B. Goldsmiths of London to melt down groats,
halfgroats and pence to the sum of £100 in order to make a silver vessel for
the use of Margaret, Countess of Norfolk.
Another illustration was the meeting of Mac Murrough,
an Irish chief and the Earl f Gloucester in 1399. The
chief arrived on a horse and being asked how much such a wonderful horse had
cost, he replied "four hundred cows", it being the case that there
was no physical money available so bartering was the only means of trade. Further, the actual groat dies were not
really up to the mark in terms of depth - Richard II groats are nearly always
wishy-washy in appearance (just look at the Spink plate coin - the best they
could source with all their collector contacts) and probably were if you were
lucky enough to have one fresh out of the mint in the late 1300's. This is a remarkably good grade coin, being
by far the best I've ever had. Sold with an old dealer ticket with £1,200 price. A quick browse of past sales of type II
groats will show you that far lesser grade coins sold for well into four
figures. A very
desirable coin indeed. £1,950
Pennies
WMH-8111: Richard II Medieval Hammered
Silver Long Cross Penny. Early style, class I, York mint. Distinctive cross on the
king's breast; quatrefoil in reverse centre. Spink 1690. Richard II, as well as Henry IV, are incredibly hard monarchs in terms of finding a good example
of a penny. Although worn, this coin has
the regnal name and the diagnostic cross-on-breast. £225
WMH-8136:
Richard II
Medieval Hammered Silver Penny. A most interesting Non-Regal (contemporary counterfeit) of a London penny based upon
Spink 1686. Very clear regnal name and nearly as clear a
reverse mint signature. Of apparent good silver content (certainly rings like any other
decent quality contemporary penny) and a nice 1.01 grams weight. A particularly unflattering portrait, showing
Richard with something of a trunk for a nose (I'm not aware that the man
himself possessed such a proboscis in the flesh?!) It is not often - not often
at all - that we see such good grade contemporary counterfeits surviving
through to today. All in all, a good
quality and extremely interesting coin in excellent grade. £335
Provenance:
Ex Mike
Vosper
Halfpennies
WMH-7185:
Richard II
Hammered Silver Medieval Halfpenny.
Intermediate issue – no marks on breast, 1377-99, London mint. Spink 1699. A nice grade example. £115
WMH-7279:
Richard II Medieval
Hammered Silver Half Penny. Class IIIa, 1377-99, London mint.
Spink 1700.
An attractive, higher grade example. £195
WMH-7295:
Richard II Medieval
Hammered Silver Round Half Penny. Type
IV (immediately preceding the Henry IV coinage), 1377 - 1399, London mint. Spink 1700A. An excellent portrait coin. £145
WMH-8021: Richard II Medieval
Hammered Silver Excellent Portrait Piece Halfpenny. Intermediate style with no
marks on breast or in the field. London mint - lombardic n's. Spink 1699. An excellent portrait of the "mean-spirited
knave but also a fool who has cast himself in the role of tragic hero, a role
that no one else in the play takes seriously, and whose fall is directly due to
his own folly”, otherwise known as Richard II - at least that's how
Shakespeare saw fit to depict him, but then Richard was definitely not
Shakespeare's favourite name when it came to kings! This coin is better than the Spink plate coin
which was the very best example they could find with all their vast
resources. Ex old Mike
Vosper ticket. £225
Henry IV (1399-1413) Read
about Henry IV
Heavy Coinage (1399 – 1412)
Penny
York
WMH-7423:
Henry IV
Hammered Silver Medieval Penny. Heavy
Coinage, 1399 - 1412. 0.95g. York mint, Spink 1722. An Episcopal issue under Archbishop Scrope,
dated to 1405 only. During the entire
reign of Henry IV, but particularly the Heavy Coinage, gold was in short supply
(just £45,000 bullion for this 13 year period) but silver coinage was much more
seriously impacted with only £1,750 of silver being available up to Michaelmus 1408, with nothing thereafter. Further, not only was hardly any Heavy
Coinage silver issued, but what was issued was literally worth more than its
face value and so ended up on the Continent where it was melted down. This imbalance straddled the very tail end of
Edward III, continuing up to and including the first issue of Henry V, although
the Henry IV period, particularly the Heavy Coinage, was the worst
affected. Full flan,
good weight, good detail, including reignal name. The coin has an uneven or wavy flan and is a
field-find with much dirt still adhering to the coin. An unadulterated, honest
coin. Sold with a two page Finds.org.uk
report which provides a wealth of information as well as provenance. A choice example of a
particularly difficult coin that, if you are lucky enough to source one, will
invariably be in poor grade and problematic. £1,950
WMH-7566:
Henry
IV House of Lancaster Medieval Hammered Silver Penny. Heavy Coinage, 1399 - 1412. 0.99g. York mint, Spink 1722. +hEnRIC x REX x AnGL x (---) this heavy coinage being over struck on old
Richard II dies where the legend was RICARDVS REX ANGL or RICARD REX ANGLIE)
and +CIVI TAS EBO RACI. An Episcopal
issue under Archbishop Scrope, dated to 1405 only.
During the entire reign of Henry IV, but particularly the Heavy Coinage,
gold was in short supply (just £45,000 bullion for this 13 year period) but
silver coinage was much more seriously impacted with only £1,750 of silver
being available up to Michaelmus 1408, with nothing
thereafter. Further, not only was hardly
any Heavy Coinage silver issued, but what was issued was literally worth more
than its face value and so ended up on the Continent where it was melted
down. This imbalance straddled the very
tail end of Edward III, continuing up to and including the first issue of Henry
V, although the Henry IV period, particularly the Heavy Coinage, was the worst
affected. Full flan,
good weight, good detail, including reignal name. A most interesting obverse
legend – a coin definitely worthy of someone’s skill and time in unravelling it
all. A choice example
of a particularly difficult coin that, if you are lucky enough to source one,
will invariably be in poor grade and problematic. £1,950
Light Coinage (1412 – 1413)
Groat
WMH-8071: Henry IV and V Medieval House of Lancaster Hammered
Silver Groat. A
great rarity - Henry IV final class III obverse die (Spink 1728) muled with a Henry V initial class A London reverse die
(Spink 1759), resulting in a mule / hybrid (but most importantly, with the
Henry IV obverse), listed as Spink 1760.
A coin with a foot very much in two camps: clearly issued under Henry V,
right at the very start of the reign (note the lombardic n's
on the reverse) but with an actual obverse die used at the very end of the
Henry IV reign. During the entire reign
of Henry IV, but particularly the Heavy Coinage, gold was in short supply (just
£45,000 bullion for this 13 year period) but silver coinage was much more
seriously impacted with only £1,750 of silver being available up to Michaelmus 1408, with nothing thereafter. Further, not only was hardly any Heavy
Coinage silver issued, but what was issued was literally worth more than its
face value and so ended up on the Continent where it was melted down. This imbalance straddled the very tail end of
Edward III, continuing up to and including the first issue of Henry V, although
the Henry IV period, particularly the Heavy Coinage, was the worst affected,
especially groats which were extremely thin on the ground back than and like
hens' teeth today. As a Henry IV groat,
this is obviously exceptionally rare; as a Henry V groat ,
this is the very rarest of all the x11 different types, including the emaciated
bust variety. Provenance back to almost
x70 years ago with a rather impressive name in the coin collecting
community having had this very coin in his collection - P. W. P. Carlyon-Britton. £1,875
Provenance:
Ex P. W. P. Carlyon-Britton (November 1958)
Ex P.D.R. (Lot 84, 1995)
Ex Tim Owen
WMH-8104: Henry IV / V Hammered
Silver Medieval SCOWLING BUST Groat.
Light coinage, London mint, type B2a (there is now
uncertainty as to whether types A and B of Henry V should be given to Henry
IV), initial mark Cross Pattée, no fleurs over the
crown and Quatrefoil after hENRIC - Spink 1762B. There is an interesting mention of this very
coin in BNJ 1997 (50), p.26. See old
tickets here and
information sheet here. High grade, impeccable
provenance - Choice. £1,975 RESERVED (M.Ha.26-6-24
OUT ON APPROVAL)
Provenance:
ex D. Mangaki
collection...
Purchased from Seaby 1956
ex Margaret Delmé Radcliffe
collection...
Dispersed Glendining's Action (1985)
Ex North
Yorkshire Moor collection...
Dispersed DN W Action (2019)
Ex Mike Vosper (2019 - £1,250 ticket price)
Ex Mike Hallam collection
Penny
London
WMH-7676:
Henry IV House of
Lancaster Medieval Hammered Silver Penny.
Light coinage of 1412-13, London mint, pellet and annulet by
crown, Spink 1733. A very
coin for any mint but particularly for London. Further, this is numismatically even more
significant in that it’s a contemporary counterfeit: a copy made at the time,
in this instance with remarkably good quality dies, but underweight thus
allowing the counterfeiters to make nearly two pennies out of one penny’s worth
of silver. Scale that up and it becomes
an attractive proposition, until, perhaps, you realise that if you got caught
doing this, you’d more than likely lose a hand – literally – as punishment. I have never seen a contemporary counterfeit
Henry IV penny before. This has been in
the possession of the renowned numismatic researcher Jon Mann for several years
who had not seen another either. A great rarity. £845
Durham
WMH-7222:
Henry IV
Hammered Silver Penny. Light Coinage issue of 1412-13 only. [+hENR]ICVS RE[X
ANGLIE] legend with excellent portrait showing the typical Henry IV bush hair
as well as the clear trefoil on the breast with pellet terminals and a partial
missing foot as the trefoil has slipped.
Durham mint - [CIVI] TA[S] DVn OL[M]. 0.88 grams, 17mm. Lord Stewartby states that whilst production of gold throughout
the reign of Richard II remained constant, silver was somewhat erratic and far
from prolific – silver coins headed for the Continent in huge numbers as silver
was worth more there than in the UK.
Under Henry IV it was far more of an issue. Easter 1412 witnessed a numismatic landmark –
the new “Light” coinage was introduced.
Also in Easter of 1412, the value of silver bullion increased. Of the meagre coinage left, what you tend to
see of Henry IV coinage (if you’re lucky enough to see any at all!) is coinage
worn and clipped to within an inch of its life.
Enough legend remains on this coin to
make it unambiguously Henry IV, Durham.
This is one of the best grade Henry IV pennies I have seen. I was following a Henry IV penny, in similar
grade, in a recent London auction. Whilst the estimate was a come and get me
(approximate) £400-£500, the hammer was more than the full asking price on this
coin, and that was BEFORE the 25-30% buyer’s commission that auction houses
currently charge. This coin is definitely
one of the best examples of a Henry IV penny that I have offered for sale. A very rare coin,
particularly so in this grade.
£1,175
Halfpenny
WMH-8070: Henry IV Medieval House of Lancaster Hammered Silver
Halfpenny. Heavy
coinage, 1399-1412, London, later large bust so towards the
latter part of that date range, Spink 1724.
During the entire reign of Henry IV, but particularly the Heavy Coinage,
gold was in short supply (just £45,000 bullion for this 13 year period) but
silver coinage was much more seriously impacted with only £1,750 of silver
being available up to Michaelmus 1408, with nothing
thereafter. Further, not only was hardly
any Heavy Coinage silver issued, but what was issued was literally worth more
than its face value and so ended up on the Continent where it was melted
down. This imbalance straddled the very
tail end of Edward III, continuing up to and including the first issue of Henry
V, although the Henry IV period, particularly the Heavy Coinage, was the worst
affected. If you're after a jolly good
portrait piece of the iconic Henry IV, look no further! Outstanding. Ex Mike Vosper ticket. £795
Henry V (1413-22) Read
about Henry V.
Hammered
Silver
Groat
WMH-6916:
Henry V (Battle
of Agincourt fame) Hammered Silver Medieval Groat. 1413 – 1422, class C, Spink 1765. Henry V of the Battle of Agincourt fame: I pray thee, wish not one man more. By
Jove, I am not covetous for gold, Nor care I who doth feed upon my cost; It
yearns me not if men my garments wear; Such outward things dwell not in my
desires: But if it be a sin to covet honour, I am the most offending soul
alive. This is obviously Shakespeare's
interpretation on Henry's St Crispin's Day speech but it's generally believed
that Henry V gave a rousing speech to his men, who, remember, were vastly
outnumbered, just before they defeated the French. London mint.
£375
WMH-8071: Henry IV and V Medieval House of Lancaster Hammered
Silver Groat. A
great rarity - Henry IV final class III obverse die (Spink 1728) muled with a Henry V initial class A London reverse die
(Spink 1759), resulting in a mule / hybrid (but most importantly, with the
Henry IV obverse), listed as Spink 1760.
A coin with a foot very much in two camps: clearly issued under Henry V,
right at the very start of the reign (note the lombardic n's
on the reverse) but with an actual obverse die used at the very end of the
Henry IV reign. During the entire reign
of Henry IV, but particularly the Heavy Coinage, gold was in short supply (just
£45,000 bullion for this 13 year period) but silver coinage was much more
seriously impacted with only £1,750 of silver being available up to Michaelmus 1408, with nothing thereafter. Further, not only was hardly any Heavy
Coinage silver issued, but what was issued was literally worth more than its
face value and so ended up on the Continent where it was melted down. This imbalance straddled the very tail end of
Edward III, continuing up to and including the first issue of Henry V, although
the Henry IV period, particularly the Heavy Coinage, was the worst affected,
especially groats which were extremely thin on the ground back than and like
hens' teeth today. As a Henry IV groat,
this is obviously exceptionally rare; as a Henry V groat ,
this is the very rarest of all the x11 different types, including the emaciated
bust variety. Provenance back to almost
x70 years ago with a rather impressive name in the coin collecting
community having had this very coin in his collection - P. W. P. Carlyon-Britton. See Henry IV section above
Provenance:
Ex P. W. P. Carlyon-Britton (November 1958)
Ex P.D.R. (Lot 84, 1995)
Ex Tim Owen
WMH-8104: Henry IV / V Hammered Silver
Medieval SCOWLING BUST Groat. Light
coinage, London mint, type B2a (there is now
uncertainty as to whether types A and B of Henry V should be given to Henry
IV), initial mark Cross Pattée, no fleurs over the
crown and Quatrefoil after hENRIC - Spink 1762B. There is an interesting mention of this very
coin in BNJ 1997 (50), p.26. See old
tickets here and
information sheet here. High grade, impeccable
provenance - Choice. See
Henry IV section above
Provenance:
ex D. Mangaki
collection...
Purchased from Seaby 1956
ex Margaret Delmé Radcliffe
collection...
Dispersed Glendining's Action (1985)
Ex North
Yorkshire Moor collection...
Dispersed DN W Action (2019)
Ex Mike Vosper (2019 - £1,250 ticket price)
Penny
London
WMH-8081:
Henry V Medieval Hammered
Silver Penny. Initial mark Cross Pattée, London mint, mullet & broken annulet by crown, class C,
Spink 1778. Henry V of the Battle of Agincourt fame: I pray thee, wish not one man more. By
Jove, I am not covetous for gold, Nor care I who doth feed upon my cost; It
yearns me not if men my garments wear; Such outward things dwell not in my
desires: But if it be a sin to covet honour, I am the most offending soul
alive. This is obviously Shakespeare's
interpretation on Henry's St Crispin's Day speech but it's generally believed
that Henry V gave a rousing speech to his men, who, remember, were vastly
outnumbered, just before they defeated the French. Centrally struck both sides,
minimal clipping, strong detail throughout - an outstanding example from a
fairly poor issue. £375
York
WMH-7269:
Henry V
Medieval Hammered Silver Penny. Class F, York mint, Spink
1788. Henry V of the Battle of Agincourt fame: I pray thee, wish not one man more. By Jove,
I am not covetous for gold, Nor care I who doth feed upon my cost; It yearns me
not if men my garments wear; Such outward things dwell not in my desires: But
if it be a sin to covet honour, I am the most offending soul alive. This is obviously Shakespeare's
interpretation on Henry's St Crispin's Day speech but it's generally believed
that Henry V gave a rousing speech to his men, who, remember, were vastly
outnumbered, just before they defeated the French. Generally a poor
issue with little effort put into the dies or indeed the end product. This coin is much above average for
issue. £185
WMH-8059: An Excellent Henry V Long
Cross Hammered Silver Penny. Initial
mark Pierced Cross, York mint, mullet & lis by
crown, annulet in reverse quarter - Spink 1791.
For a York mint coin, this is a remarkable, bordering on
exceptional example, all the more so because this coin was struck from LOCAL
DIES. I have only ever had London mint coins as good as this before. Henry
V of the Battle of Agincourt fame: I pray thee, wish not one man more. By Jove, I am not covetous for
gold, Nor care I who doth feed upon my cost; It yearns me not if men my
garments wear; Such outward things dwell not in my desires: But if it be a sin
to covet honour, I am the most offending soul alive. This is obviously Shakespeare's
interpretation on Henry's St Crispin's Day speech but it's generally believed
that Henry V gave a rousing speech to his men, who, remember, were vastly
outnumbered, just before they defeated the French. Centrally struck both sides,
good legends, minor clipping only, strong detail throughout. This would have stood out when it was minted
in amongst all the other coins that were poorly struck and from indifferent
local dies. Rare. £385 RESERVED (M.He.30-4-24 Lay-Away)
WMH-8082:
Henry V Medieval Hammered
Silver Penny. Initial mark Cross Pattée, York mint, mullet & broken annulet by crown, class C,
Spink 1778. Henry V of the Battle of Agincourt fame: I pray thee, wish not one man more. By
Jove, I am not covetous for gold, Nor care I who doth feed upon my cost; It
yearns me not if men my garments wear; Such outward things dwell not in my
desires: But if it be a sin to covet honour, I am the most offending soul
alive. This is obviously Shakespeare's
interpretation on Henry's St Crispin's Day speech but it's generally believed
that Henry V gave a rousing speech to his men, who, remember, were vastly
outnumbered, just before they defeated the French. Ex Dr Martin Allen academic
collection. £275
WMH-8083:
Henry V Medieval Hammered
Silver Penny. Initial mark Pierced Cross, York mint, mullet & trefoil by crown, class F, Spink
1788. Henry V of the Battle of Agincourt fame: I pray thee, wish not one man more. By
Jove, I am not covetous for gold, Nor care I who doth feed upon my cost; It yearns
me not if men my garments wear; Such outward things dwell not in my desires:
But if it be a sin to covet honour, I am the most offending soul alive. This is obviously Shakespeare's
interpretation on Henry's St Crispin's Day speech but it's generally believed
that Henry V gave a rousing speech to his men, who, remember, were vastly
outnumbered, just before they defeated the French. Centrally struck both sides,
some clipping, strong detail throughout - an outstanding portrait piece from a
fairly poor issue. £295
WMH-8094: An Excellent
Henry V Long Cross Hammered Silver Penny.
Initial mark Pierced Cross, York mint, mullet & lis by crown,
initial mark Pierced Cross, annulet in reverse quarter - Spink 1791. For a York mint coin, this is a remarkable, bordering on
exceptional example, all the more so because this coin was struck from LOCAL
DIES. I have only ever had London mint coins as good as this before. Henry
V of the Battle of Agincourt fame: I pray thee, wish not one man more. By Jove, I am not covetous for
gold, Nor care I who doth feed upon my cost; It yearns me not if men my
garments wear; Such outward things dwell not in my desires: But if it be a sin
to covet honour, I am the most offending soul alive. This is obviously Shakespeare's
interpretation on Henry's St Crispin's Day speech but it's generally believed
that Henry V gave a rousing speech to his men, who, remember, were vastly
outnumbered, just before they defeated the French. Centrally struck both sides,
good legends, minor clipping only, strong detail throughout. This would have stood out when it was minted
in amongst all the other coins that were poorly struck and from indifferent
local dies. Rare. £385
Durham
WMH-7644:
Henry V Medieval
Hammered Silver Long Cross Penny.
House of Lancaster, Durham mint, class G with a mullet and lis by the crown. Spink 1791. Henry V of the Battle of
Agincourt fame: I pray thee,
wish not one man more. By Jove, I am not covetous for gold, Nor care I who doth
feed upon my cost; It yearns me not if men my garments wear; Such outward
things dwell not in my desires: But if it be a sin to covet honour, I am the
most offending soul alive. This is obviously Shakespeare's
interpretation on Henry's St Crispin's Day speech but it's generally believed
that Henry V gave a rousing speech to his men, who, remember, were vastly
outnumbered, just before they defeated the French. An
unusually good grade and pleasing example for any mint of Henry V penny, but
particularly the northern mints with local dies in use. £225
WMH-8164:
Henry V Medieval
Hammered Silver Penny. House of
Lancaster, Durham mint, class C with a mullet and
worn broken annulet by the crown. Most
importantly, the quatrefoil at the end of the legend is very clear. Spink 1782. Henry V of the Battle of Agincourt fame: I pray thee, wish not one man more. By
Jove, I am not covetous for gold, Nor care I who doth feed upon my cost; It
yearns me not if men my garments wear; Such outward things dwell not in my
desires: But if it be a sin to covet honour, I am the most offending soul
alive. This is obviously Shakespeare's
interpretation on Henry's St Crispin's Day speech but it's generally believed
that Henry V gave a rousing speech to his men, who, remember, were vastly
outnumbered, just before they defeated the French. Much
above average grade for any mint of Henry V penny, but particularly the
northern mints - more so Durham - with local
dies in use. £395
Halfpenny