Irish Coins & Tokens

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Irish / American (Colonial)

Halfpennies& Farthings

WI-8100: 1674 Irish-American St Patrick Copper Farthing. Brass anti counterfeiting plug very much in situ with excellent detail both sides. No damage or repairs. Spink 6571. Struck on a large flan (25mm diameter) but still termed “Small Size”. This is the best grade example I had ever handled, even better than WI-7576 which some of you may remember. Collectors of this issue will be aware that they were struck in Dublin on soft metal and that virtually all extant examples, and there aren’t really that many in total, are grim in the extreme. A rare and desirable coin in any grade but clearly much more so this coin. £975

WI-7126: 1674 Irish-American St Patrick Copper Farthing. Brass anti counterfeiting plug very much in situ with excellent detail both sides. No damage or repairs. Spink 6569. Struck on a large flan (25mm diameter) but still termed “Small Size”. This was possibly the best grade example I had ever handled until WI-7576 came my way! Collectors of this issue will be aware that they were struck in Dublin on soft metal and that virtually all extant examples, and there aren’t really that many in total, are grim in the extreme. A rare and desirable coin in any grade but clearly much more so this coin. £785

WI-6648: 1722 Type 1 Irish American William Wood Copper Halfpenny. About VF. Rare in this grade, rarer still being this first issue. £355

WI-5627: 1760 Irish “VOCE POPULI” Copper Halfpenny. Type 9. Ex Colin Cooke collection. £320

WI-5629: 1760 Irish “VOCE POPULI” Copper Halfpenny. Type 4. Ex Colin Cooke collection. £325

Irish "Confederate Catholics" Kilkenny Issues

Irish The Great Rebellion, Coinages of the Lords Justices Issue - "Ormonde Money"

WI-9035: Irish Charles 1st Hammered Silver ORMONDE Groat. The Great Rebellion in Ireland. Issued by the Lords Justices at Dublin and termed Ormond Money due to the Earl of Ormonde being appointed Lieutenant of Ireland in 1643. This issue demonstrated allegiance to the monarch by incorporating the king’s crown on the obverse. Issued 1643-1644. Large C•R; crown above; all within linear and beaded border / Large IIII; D above; all within linear and beaded border. Spink 6548. This was the final coinage of the rebellion period to be issued. The crude fashion with which this coin has been cut, together with the rudimentary die-sinking, and the indifferent strike, is somewhat reminiscent of the Charles 1st besieged issue just across the Irish Sea in Carlisle a year or so later. £235

WI-9105: Charles 1st Irish Hammered Silver Ormonde Money Sixpence. Issued during the Great Rebellion, this is an issue of 1643-44. Spink 6547. Very much along the lines of the English Newark, Pontefract, Carlisle etc siege pieces, the Ormonde Money was crudely cut from flattened silver plate and then stamped. These stamps were not engraved to anywhere near the quality of coin dies and the "stamping" resulted in a coin far from what we might expect a professional moneyer to produce working out of an official mint. As a result, Ormonde coinage is usually poor. This is the very best example of a sixpence that I have ever handled and possibly even seen. Rare thus. £695

Provenance:

ex Alexander Christopher collection

Irish James II Civil War Issues - "Gun Money"

Crowns

WI-7550: 1690 Irish Gun Money Full Crown. James II emergency Civil War coinage of 1689-91. Spink 6578. Overstruck on the large Gun Money halfcrowns as by 1690, these were obsolete; replaced by the small size halfcrowns. The obverse of the Gun Money crown (and it is just the crowns) has similarities to the earlier Charles 1^st halfcrowns and crowns, which I’m sure was far from accidental. It won’t have escaped readers’ attention that Gun Money coinage is currently riding high in terms of popularity. After fleeing from England to France in 1688 – an effective abdication from the English throne – James II landed in Ireland March 1689 in order to promote his Catholic cause, something we are perhaps still living with today?! He had insufficient funds to prosecute this war so the plan was to raise money by issuing base metal coinage in place of what would previously have been silver issues. This was a less subtle example of the Quantitative Easing that we all witnessed a few years ago. This coinage was set up with an intention for them to be exchanged for sterling coinage once the dust had settled. This never happened. The metal for these coins came from old cannon, bells and various other scrap metals that were termed “Gun Money”. £285

Halfcrowns

WI-7675: 1690 (May) James II Irish Gun Money Half Crown. Small-sized halfcrown. Spink 6580c. Limerick bust. After fleeing from England to France in 1688 – an effective abdication from the English throne – James II landed in Ireland March 1689 in order to promote his Catholic cause, something we are perhaps still living with today?! He had insufficient funds to prosecute this war so the plan was to raise money by issuing base metal coinage in place of what would previously have been silver issues. This was a less subtle example of the Quantitative Easing that we all witnessed a few years ago. If today’s money had still been based on the value of the coin in your hand being worth its face value in precious metal, then the Chancellor in 2009 would perhaps have done something very similar! This coinage was set up with an intention for them to be exchanged for sterling coinage once the dust had settled. This never happened. The metal for these coins came from old cannon, bells and various other scrap metals that were termed “Gun Money”. £275

WI-7482: March 1689 Irish Gun Money Half Crown. A unique example of an Irish coin dated by year AND month! After fleeing from England to France in 1688 – an effective abdication from the English throne – James II landed in Ireland March 1689 in order to promote his Catholic cause, something we are perhaps still living with today?! He had insufficient funds to prosecute this war so the plan was to raise money by issuing base metal coinage in place of what would previously have been silver issues. This was a less subtle example of the Quantitative Easing that we all witnessed a few years ago. If today’s money had still been based on the value of the coin in your hand being worth its face value in precious metal, then the Chancellor in 2009 would perhaps have done something very similar! This coinage was set up with an intention for them to be exchanged for sterling coinage once the dust had settled. This never happened. The metal for these coins came from old cannon, bells and various other scrap metals that were termed “Gun Money”. £115

WI-7660: 1690 (May) James II Irish Gun Money Half Crown. Small-sized halfcrown. Spink 6580c. Limerick bust. After fleeing from England to France in 1688 – an effective abdication from the English throne – James II landed in Ireland March 1689 in order to promote his Catholic cause, something we are perhaps still living with today?! He had insufficient funds to prosecute this war so the plan was to raise money by issuing base metal coinage in place of what would previously have been silver issues. This was a less subtle example of the Quantitative Easing that we all witnessed a few years ago. If today’s money had still been based on the value of the coin in your hand being worth its face value in precious metal, then the Chancellor in 2009 would perhaps have done something very similar! This coinage was set up with an intention for them to be exchanged for sterling coinage once the dust had settled. This never happened. The metal for these coins came from old cannon, bells and various other scrap metals that were termed “Gun Money”. £345

Shillings

WI-5443: 1689 Irish Gun Money Shilling. Struck August 1689. After fleeing from England to France in 1688 – an effective abdication from the English throne – James II landed in Ireland March 1689 in order to promote his Catholic cause, something we are perhaps still living with today?! He had insufficient funds to prosecute this war so the plan was to raise money by issuing base metal coinage in place of what would previously have been silver issues. This was a less subtle example of the Quantitative Easing that we all witnessed a few years ago. If today’s money had still been based on the value of the coin in your hand being worth its face value in precious metal, then the Chancellor in 2009 would perhaps have done something very similar! This coinage was set up with an intention for them to be exchanged for sterling coinage once the dust had settled. This never happened. The metal for these coins came from old cannon, bells and various other scrap metals that were termed “Gun Money”. £95

Sixpences

WI-7659: 1689 (November) James II Irish Gun Money Sixpence. Rarer denomination. Spink 6583f. After fleeing from England to France in 1688 – an effective abdication from the English throne – James II landed in Ireland March 1689 in order to promote his Catholic cause, something we are perhaps still living with today?! He had insufficient funds to prosecute this war so the plan was to raise money by issuing base metal coinage in place of what would previously have been silver issues. This was a less subtle example of the Quantitative Easing that we all witnessed a few years ago. If today’s money had still been based on the value of the coin in your hand being worth its face value in precious metal, then the Chancellor in 2009 would perhaps have done something very similar! This coinage was set up with an intention for them to be exchanged for sterling coinage once the dust had settled. This never happened. The metal for these coins came from old cannon, bells and various other scrap metals that were termed “Gun Money”. £165

WI-7734: 1689 Irish Gun Money SIXPENCE under James II. Struck January 1689. Spink 6583H. After fleeing from England to France in 1688 – an effective abdication from the English throne – James II landed in Ireland March 1689 in order to promote his Catholic cause, something we are perhaps still living with today?! He had insufficient funds to prosecute this war so the plan was to raise money by issuing base metal coinage in place of what would previously have been silver issues. This was a less subtle example of the Quantitative Easing that we all witnessed a few years ago. If today’s money had still been based on the value of the coin in your hand being worth its face value in precious metal, then the Chancellor in 2009 would perhaps have done something very similar! This coinage was set up with an intention for them to be exchanged for sterling coinage once the dust had settled. This never happened. The metal for these coins came from old cannon, bells and various other scrap metals that were termed “Gun Money”. The sixpence is a rarer denomination. £195

WI-9067: 1689 Irish Gun Money SIXPENCE under James II. Struck January 1689. Spink 6583H. After fleeing from England to France in 1688 – an effective abdication from the English throne – James II landed in Ireland March 1689 in order to promote his Catholic cause, something we are perhaps still living with today?! He had insufficient funds to prosecute this war so the plan was to raise money by issuing base metal coinage in place of what would previously have been silver issues. This was a less subtle example of the Quantitative Easing that we all witnessed a few years ago. If today’s money had still been based on the value of the coin in your hand being worth its face value in precious metal, then the Chancellor in 2009 would perhaps have done something very similar! This coinage was set up with an intention for them to be exchanged for sterling coinage once the dust had settled. This never happened. The metal for these coins came from old cannon, bells and various other scrap metals that were termed “Gun Money”. The sixpence is a rarer denomination. £225

Irish James II Civil War Issues - "Pewter Money"

Irish James II Civil War Issues - "Siege of Limerick" Money

WI-6888: 1691 (this coin undated – read on!) Limerick Besieged Copper Irish Halfpenny. Limerick was besieged in 1690-91 with no fresh metal available to mint coinage. As a result, they gathered in as much of the large Gun Money shillings (from 1689-90) as they could and over-struck them with the new "Limerick Besieged" dies. It is interesting to note that the old theory of “large shillings being halfpennies; small shillings farthings” has been resolved. It would appear that large Gun Money shillings were still used to make these Limerick halfpence pieces (evidenced so clearly on this coin) but the supposed Limerick farthings are actually still Limerick halfpennies but struck on virgin flans (presumably when they ran out of Gun Money large shillings) that were slightly smaller in flan, perhaps as a money saving exercise? This coin is the most unusual Limerick halfpenny I have ever seen:

Obverse:

1. The central crown of the reverse gun money host coin can clearly be seen, inverted 180 degrees.

2. The V is IACOBVS is an inverted A whereas it was a definite V on the obverse die itself.

Reverse:

1. The king's hair of the host coin can clearly be seen, again inverted 180 degrees.

2. There is no date (1691) whatsoever as IACOBVS (and note the V is a V, not an inverted A) still remains.

3. The N of HIBERNIA, always inverted on the die, looks more like an A with a vertical line to the right.

A truly unique and extremely interesting coin! Spink 6594. £465

WSC-7163: 1691 Irish “Limerick Besieged” James II Copper Halfpenny. Limerick was besieged in 1690-91 with no fresh metal available to mint coinage. As a result, they gathered in as much of the large Gun Money shillings (from 1689-90) as they could and over-struck them with the new "Limerick Besieged" dies. This example having much of the original host coin still visible – a desirable characteristic. Spink 6594. It is interesting to note that the old theory of “large shillings being halfpennies; small shillings farthings” has been resolved. It would appear that large Gun Money shillings were still used to make these Limerick halfpence pieces (evidenced so clearly on this coin) but the supposed Limerick farthings are actually still Limerick halfpennies but struck on virgin flans (presumably when they ran out of Gun Money large shillings) that were slightly smaller in flan, perhaps as a money saving exercise? A most interesting and historical coin. £185

"Hammered" Coinage

King John (as Lord of Ireland)

WI-9118: John (as Lord) Irish Medieval Hammered Silver Halfpenny. Listed in reference books as pennies but circulated at halfpence (the halfpennies duly circulated as farthings). Second DOM[inus] coinage with the unusual obverse DOM having the D over an M, which I've never seen before! Circa 1185/1190 and no later than 1208/9. Dublin mint; Norman as moneyer. With a cross potent as opposed to a cross pommée reverse, this is a Group 1b coin, Spink 6205. Prince John (his father still being very much alive at this point) was given Lordship of Ireland in 1177. He finally visited in 1185 which coincided with the first (excessively rare) issue. This later issue followed on from that. In 1208, John became king, so heralding the third "Rex" coinage. An outstanding coin - choice. £495

Provenance:

ex Tim Owen (his earlier colour ticket)

WI-9032: John (as Lord) Irish Medieval Hammered Silver Halfpenny. Listed in reference books as pennies but circulated at halfpence (the halfpennies duly circulated as farthings). Second DOM[inus] coinage with obverse legend ending -OM, c.1185/1190 and no later than 1208/9. Waterford mint; Walter as moneyer. With a cross potent as opposed to a cross pommée reverse, this is a Group 1b coin, Spink 6210. Prince John (his father still being very much alive at this point) was given Lordship of Ireland in 1177. He finally visited in 1185 which coincided with the first (excessively rare) issue. This later issue followed on from that. In 1208, John became king, so heralding the third "Rex" coinage. Waterford is a rarer mint for this issue. £385

Provenance

Ex M.J. McKeever collection

WI-8172: John (as Lord) Irish Medieval Hammered Silver Halfpenny. Listed in reference books as pennies but circulated at halfpence (the halfpennies duly circulated as farthings). Second DOM[inus] coinage with obverse legend ending -OM, c.1185/1190 and no later than 1208/9. Waterford mint: [+GE]FREI ON W[--]. With a cross potent as opposed to a cross pommée reverse, this is a Group 1b coin, Spink 6210. Prince John (his father still being very much alive at this point) was given Lordship of Ireland in 1177. He finally visited in 1185 which coincided with the first (excessively rare) issue. This later issue followed on from that. In 1208, John became king, so heralding the third "Rex" coinage. Waterford is a rarer mint for this issue. £385

Provenance

Ex M.J. McKeever collection

WI-8173: John (as Lord) Irish Medieval Hammered Silver Halfpenny. Listed in reference books as pennies but circulated at halfpence (the halfpennies duly circulated as farthings). Second DOM[inus] coinage with obverse legend ending -DOM, c.1185/1190 and no later than 1208/9. Dublin mint: TOMAS [ON D]VV. With a cross pommée as opposed to a cross potent reverse, this is the rarer Group 2b coin, Spink 6213. Prince John (his father still being very much alive at this point) was given Lordship of Ireland in 1177. He finally visited in 1185 which coincided with the first (excessively rare) issue. This later issue followed on from that. In 1208, John became king, so heralding the third "Rex" coinage. £385

Provenance

Ex M.J. McKeever collection

King John (as King of Ireland)

Penny

WI-8047: Irish King John Medieval Hammered Silver Penny - Choice. Third "REX" coinage, ROBERD as moneyer at the Dublin mint. Spink 6228. An exceptionally nice grade coin - attractively toned and with much eye-appeal. £495

WI-7943: Irish King John Medieval Hammered Silver Penny - Choice. Third "REX" coinage, ROBERD as moneyer at the Dublin mint. Spink 6228. An exceptionally nice grade coin - attractively toned and with much eye-appeal. £495

WI-9107: John Irish Medieval Hammered Silver Penny - Rare Mint. Third "REX" coinage of 1208/9 - 1211/12. WILLEM ON LIME - Willem on Limerick. Spink 6229. This is the very first Limerick King John penny I have ever seen in the flesh - they are that rare. Graded VF. £595

Provenance:

ex Spink

Halfpenny

WI-7728: John, as King of Ireland, Medieval Hammered Silver Halfpenny. Third REX coinage, circa 1199 - 1216. Dublin mint with ROBERD as the moneyer. Spink 6231. I have a lot of time for Coincraft’s informative and sometimes insightful comments (less so their pricing although to be fair, it’s an old publication) and they have not let the collector down on this coin – see what they say here. As presentable an example of this rarer denomination as you’re likely to find. £285

Henry III

WI-7942: Irish Henry III Medieval Voided Long Cross Hammered Silver Penny. Class 1a, RICARD as moneyer at the Dublin mint. Spink 6235. An unusually nice example from this rarer Irish monarch. £285

WI-5929: Irish Henry III Hammered Silver Voided Long Cross Penny. Class 1b, RICARD of Dublin – the moneyer Ricard thought to be the London moneyer Richard Bonaventure operating in absentia. Spink 6236. A very long reign but actually a remarkably short issue because the Dublin mint started to issue coinage in 1251 and then in 1253-54, the Dublin mint was closed. You would imagine that Irish coinage would be for Irish consumption but unusually, large quantities of the Dublin coinage (and Dublin was the only mint in operation under Henry III) were exported to England and the Continent. Even though this was such a short mint run, a great deal of the coinage left Ireland to England and the Continent. The famous Brussels’ Hoard of 1908 consisted of roughly 64,000 continental coins but also 81,000 English, Scottish and Irish silver pennies. Of the latter, 16,000 were Irish Henry III – that’s an astounding 20% of all non Continental coinage, in a hoard found in Belgium of all places, being Irish. This is one of the best examples of an Irish Henry III penny that I’ve had in a long while. £225

WI-7244: Henry III Hammered Silver Irish Penny. Type IIa, RICARD.ON.DIVE – Dublin mint – the moneyer Ricard thought to be the London moneyer Richard Bonaventure operating in absentia. Spink 6240. A very long reign but actually a remarkably short issue because the Dublin mint started to issue coinage in 1251 and then in 1253-54, the Dublin mint was closed. You would imagine that Irish coinage would be for Irish consumption but unusually, large quantities of the Dublin coinage (and Dublin was the only mint in operation under Henry III) were exported to England and the Continent. Even though this was such a short mint run, a great deal of the coinage left Ireland to England and the Continent. The famous Brussels’ Hoard of 1908 consisted of roughly 64,000 continental coins but also 81,000 English, Scottish and Irish silver pennies. Of the latter, 16,000 were Irish Henry III – that’s an astounding 20% of all non Continental coinage, in a hoard found in Belgium of all places, being Irish. This is one of the best examples of an Irish Henry III penny that I’ve had in a long while. This coin would win no beauty contest but it should be acknowledged that Spink 6240 dies were course in nature. £125

Edward I

Pennies

Halfpennies

Farthings

Edward IV

Sun & Roses Issue

WI-5279: Irish Edward IV Hammered Silver Penny. Sun & Rose type, 1479 – 1483. Strong portrait, some legend remaining. Interesting die flaw on obverse. Burns’ S-2 Dublin. £225

Cross & Pellets “HEAVY” issue

Pence

WI-5866: Irish Edward IV Hammered Silver Penny. Rarer Heavy coinage of 1465-70. No obverse marks. Bust C, likely Dublin mint. It is thought that these coins were not always heavily clipped, rather they were full size dies struck on very short flans. £65

Cross & Pellets “LIGHT” issue

Pence

WI-5878: Irish Edward IV Hammered Silver Penny. Dublin mint, 1470-78 issue. Portrait style E, Dublin mint, Burns’ DU-1. £65

WI-5879: Irish Edward IV Hammered Silver Penny. Dublin mint, 1470-78 issue. Pellets by neck, Dublin mint, Burns’ DU-5. £65

WI-5920: Irish Edward IV Hammered Silver Penny. Light cross & pellets issue of 1473-79. Burns’ DU-6, Dublin. Spink 6365. £79

WI-7831: Unrecorded Irish Edward IV Hammered Silver Penny. Light cross & pellets issue of 1473-79. Dublin mint. Spink ----, Burns ----. An unrecorded coin with Cinquefoils by the crown on the obverse and a Quatrefoil in the centre of the reverse. Not recorded in Burns, which is the definitive guide to Irish Medieval pennies, being now into the fifth issue. Obviously a great rarity, perhaps even unique. £275

Richard III

Henry VII

WI-9106: Henry VII Irish Hammered Silver Tudor Groat. Late portrait issue of 1496 to 1505. Dublin mint, type 1A with arched crown breaking the plain tressure. Spink 6455. High grade for issue with excellent provenance. £685

Provenance:

ex Patrick Finn (early 1990's, ticket price £200)

ex Steven Damron

ex Tim Owen

Henry VIII

WI-9063: Henry VIII with Anne Boleyn Hammered Silver Irish Groat. Issued in commemoration of Henry’s marriage to Anne Boleyn, the second and probably most famous of his six wives. Spink 6472. The rarer First (1st) Harp Issue, 1534-40 and the rarest of the three wives mentioned on silver coinage, irrespective as to what Spink claim. Dated to 1534-5, in commemoration of a marriage that lasted just three years, produced the future Queen Elizabeth 1st but ultimately ended in Anne losing her head, quite literally, because she could not produce a male heir. This issue is at 0.842 silver fineness with later issues going the same way as that of the English silver coinage under Henry, ie downhill. This is only the third Anne Boleyn groat I've had, the first I remember selling within minutes of it being listed. A rare coin and in exceptional grade for issue, other than a slight crease and split at 1 o'clock obverse, being the very best grade example I've ever had. £745

WI-9040: Irish Henry VIII Hammered Silver Groat. Issued in commemoration of Henry’s marriage to Jane Seymour. Spink 6473. The rarer First (1st) Harp Issue, 1534-40 but this coin dated 1536-7 in commemoration of Henry’s marriage. Subsequent wives to see their names (initials) in lights, or specifically on Harp groats, were Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard. Anne of Cleves seems to have been overlooked by Henry and by the time of Catherine Parr, he seemed to have realised that perhaps the coinage couldn’t keep up with his marriages. This issue is at 0.842 silver fineness with later issues going the same way as that of the English silver coinage, ie downhill. £545

WI-6369: Irish Henry VIII Hammered Silver Groat. 1540. First (1st) Harp Issue, DOMINVS, “HR” by harp. Spink 6475. These groats circulated at 6d during Henry’s reign and were subsequently devalued to 4d during a later reign (those being counterstamped with x4 pellets). Initial mark Trefoil. With a silver content of 0.758 which although a lot better than the debased English Third Coinage issues of 1544 onwards, this does illustrate that debasement of silver was actively in progress in Ireland 4 years before it was introduced into England. As we all know for our history lessons at school, Henry VIII led a lavish lifestyle as well as going to war with Scotland and France. The country was fiscally challenged and so the idea was to create more coinage from the same amount of precious metal, resulting in coins often looking coppery in appearance. Not really a good way of going about things (although I’m minded of quantitative easing in recent years!) as the practise led to inflation with the hoarding of earlier, high silver content coins. The rarer earlier issue and sold with a very old collector’s ticket (Edward Watkins). £289

WI-9054: Henry VIII Second Harp Issue Irish Hammered Silver Groat. Second (2nd) Harp Issue, struck 1540-42 at 0.758 fine, which is an interesting silver content, being firmly sandwiched between the first harp issue at 0.842 fine and the third harp issue at 0.833 fine! Initial mark Trefoil. Spink 6479. In my experience, a bit rarer than the third harp issue. £295

WI-6394: Irish Henry VIII Hammered Silver Groat. 1543. Third (3^rd) Harp Issue, 1543 only. 0.833 silver fineness, which interestingly, in view of Henry VIII’s penchant for progressively reducing the silver content of his coinage throughout the reign, is actually a HIGHER silver content compared to the Second Harp issue of 1540-42. Rest assured though, the fourth issue was 0.666, the fifth 0.500 and the sixth 0.250. Initial mark Tudor Rose. Spink 6481. Nice grade. £225

Philip & Mary

WI-7898: 1557 Philip & Mary Irish Tudor Hammered Billon Silver Groat. Debased (0.250 fineness issue) hammered silver - nice grade for this usually poor issue. Two old tickets going back to 1973 and 1974 - see here and here. Re the slip ticket: for "chipped", please read "clipped". £275

Elizabeth 1st

Sixpences

WI-7838: 1601-02 Elizabeth 1^st Hammered Silver Sixpence. Struck at the very tail end of the reign in order to pay the troops England sent over to quell the “warlike” Irish of the North, led by O’Neill. The context was England’s desire to “Shire” Irish land. The Earl of Essex was sent over to lead the troops but he was recalled to London where he was promptly executed. The deceased Earl’s successor, Mountjoy, had a slightly better campaign, based on the fact that he wasn’t executed upon his return to London. This coinage was very base, but not as base as the pence of this issue, which literally contained no silver – a revolutionary action (although Henry VIII got in there first with his “Old Copper Nose” coins) when you bear in mind that the entire foundation of currency was based on these coins actually being worth, in precious metals, what they were circulating as. For example, in medieval times, a penny coin literally contained silver to the value of one penny. Spink 6508. This coin very high grade for issue - although an indifferent strike (these were struck in haste with little thought to presentation), this is virtually as it left the mint. £345

Groats

WI-7348: 1558 Irish Elizabeth 1^st Hammered Silver Groat - Choice. Base coinage of 1558 with 0.250 silver fineness. Initial mark Rose, Spink 6504. This first issue was very much a continuation of the previous base issues - it took until 1561 for the “Fine Silver” coinage to be issued. This coin is mint state – virtually “As Struck”, although to the initiated, it may not appear that way. This is an example of the finest known Irish 1555 Philip & Mary shilling to give you some idea as to how good this groat is. The billon nature of this coin defeated my usual camera, although I still include that image here. The main image is via a cheap camera phone in artificial light. Choice. £1,950

WI-6671: 1558 Irish Elizabeth 1^st Hammered Billon Silver Groat. Base issue of 1558 only. Spink 6504. Very good grade for issue. £185

THREEPENCES

WI-7923: Elizabeth 1st Hammered Billon Silver Threepence - Emergency War Money. Third (base) coinage of 1601-02 with silver at 3oz fine. Initial mark Star, Spink 6509. The entire Third Issue of Irish coinage was an emergency issue brought about by the need to pay the large numbers of soldiers who were in Ireland. Their role was to defeat the “independent and warlike” Irish of the North, under the leadership of O’Neil, and to expeditiously “Shire” Ireland and bring it under English rule, basically making Ireland an extension of England. The Earl of Essex was in command of the English troops but was recalled to England where he was duly executed. His replacement, Mountjoy, somewhat motivated by the fate of his predecessor, did a much better job. The threepence, although rated by Spink as the rarest of all silver and copper third issue coins (apart from the undated penny, extant examples of which can be counted on the fingers of one hand where the counter had unfortunately lost two or more fingers in an accident with something very sharp indeed), is not rated anywhere near as rare as they actually are. This coin, apart from the deposits which any decent conservator could easily remove, is better than the Spink plate coin and as I've often stated, the Spink plate coin is the best example Spink could find even allowing for their huge contacts list. A very rare coin indeed. £945

Pennies

WI-7839: 1601 Irish Elizabeth 1st Hammered Copper Penny. Initial mark Star. Most of these coins come out of the ground (it is interesting to note that examples have been unearthed from the Jamestown site in America, along with later James 1st hammered silver coinage) and as a result the copper corrodes. The entire Third Issue of Irish coinage, 1601-02 only, was an emergency issue brought about by the need to pay the large numbers of soldiers who were in Ireland. Their role was to defeat the “independent and warlike” Irish of the North, under the leadership of O’Neil, and to expeditiously “Shire” Ireland and bring it under English rule, basically making Ireland an extension of England. The Earl of Essex was in command of the English troops but was recalled to England where he was duly executed. His replacement, Mountjoy, somewhat motivated by the fate of his predecessor, did a much better job. Excellent grade. £235

James 1st

WI-5595: Irish James 1st Hammered Silver 6d. 1604-7, initial mark rose so 1606 – 1607. An extremely good grade example of a usually poorly struck obverse issue. £265

Pre 1800 "Milled" Coinage

Charles II

WI-7307: 1681 Charles II SILVER Proof Irish Halfpenny. Armstrong & Legge’s regal coinage issue of 1680-84. The coinage was split into two types: large and small lettering. This is a silver proof for the small letter 1681 issue – the only other silver proof in the entire series is the 1680 large letter halfpenny. 1681 small letters (Spink 6575) is extremely rare with, I think, only one example known, which may well be a copper trial piece using the silver proof dies. Slabbed by PCGS and grade PR53, which I understand to mean “Proof , about Uncirculated” – the AU grading system goes down to 50, at which point in becomes “Extremely Fine”, eg EF45. At the risk of disagreeing with an American multi national company, this coin is clearly not uncirculated, although don’t be fooled by the obverse and reverse flat areas because to a point, these were built into the dies. It’s a bit better than VF. Choice. £2,985

WI-7211: 1681 Charles II Copper Irish Halfpenny. An excellent grade coin, especially so when you appreciate just how soft the copper was. Armstrong & Legge’s regal coinage. Interestingly, pre 1680 (the first Armstrong & Legge date), Ireland had nothing but old (and terribly worn) hammered coins, small (worn) traders tokens and foreign coins in circulation. Spink 6574. Sir Thomas Armstrong and Col. George Legge were granted a twenty one year licence which was ultimately so successful that it drove out all the old currency – great at the time but problematic several years down the line when this coinage was reduced to much worn copper discs. £225

WI-7414: 1683 High Grade Irish Charles II Copper Halfpenny. Armstrong & Legge’s Regal Coinage, Spink 6575. Easily VF for issue (£400 in Spink 2020). Sold with a detailed information slip. £285

William & Mary

WI-6725: 1692 William & Mary Conjoined Busts Copper Halfpenny – High Grade. A Dublin halfpence that was struck for only three years (the English version was only in operation for one year), this one being the rarest date. Spink 6597. Made from the softest of copper (the Charles II copper halfpence issue was equally soft), ie without the “hardening” elements to the alloy of later years, these coins were notoriously prone to wear through minimal handling. The Spink plate coin is truly exceptional, being the best known example and worth well into four figures. Planchet flaw – obverse king’s hair. A very nice coin indeed. £225

WI-6934: 1693 William & Mary Conjoined Busts Copper Halfpenny – High Grade. A Dublin halfpence that was struck for only three years (the English version was only in operation for one year). Spink 6597. Made from the softest of copper (the Charles II copper halfpence issue was equally soft), ie without the “hardening” elements to the alloy of later years, these coins were notoriously prone to wear through minimal handling. This one an unrecorded overdate. Rare. £245

WI-7340: 1694 Irish William & Mary *High Grade* Copper Halfpenny. Struck at Dublin during a short three year run. Near all the copper issues from Charles II until the Hanoverians, but particularly so this specific Irish W&M issue, were struck on planchets made from a very soft copper alloy, one that was really not up to the job. As a result, these coins quickly deteriorated through initial circulation. What made the W&M coins in particular so susceptible to wear was the large relief conjoined busts obverse. I’d almost go as far to suggest that the W&M Irish halfpence wore down through circulation at a faster rate than the tin issues, and they really did wear down fast! Sold with an old auction slip stating “Very Fine”, together with an old cabinet ticket. £395

George III

WI-9084: 1769 Rare Irish George III Copper Halfpenny. First "London" coinage, type I, Spink 6612 but a contemporary counterfeit. Contemporary counterfeits were known to have been struck in Birmingham and shipped to Ireland to supplement the meagre 1st (1766 and 1769) and second (1775, 1776, 1781 and 1782) issues. We have an official figure of 50 tones of coin for the 1769 copper halfpence being struck in London. There were no farthings. 50 tons might seem a lot of coin but was in fact completely inadequate for the requirement in Ireland, hence the need to supplement. These contemporary counterfeits were derived from poor dies, were lightweight, being of dubious metal content and were often made to look "worn" before release into circulation (a worn coin attracted much less scrutiny) by a number of ingenious, albeit ham-fisted methods. It was a very serious offence indeed to make or peddle counterfeit coinage, attracting stiff draconian penalties. Two things:

1. The coin is in remarkable grade for any 1st or 2nd issue Irish halfpenny.

2. The dies that were used were what is termed High Execution dies.

Provenance:

ex Spink

WI-9052: About EF Grade 1775 Irish Copper Halfpenny. The rarer Type III - it's usually types I & II - with the longer, flowing hair. Spink 6614. There's just a hint of the upright of the vertical of a 4 in-between the bottom of the vertical and the end of the bottom curve of the 5 which would make this the extremely rare 1775/4 variety. Very high grade for type - just like the early Scottish coins, supply of currency was way, way below what was required by the populace (Ireland was renowned for having a wide range of foreign coinage in circulation alongside the official coin to fill the void) and that, coupled with the soft nature of this copper, resulted in quick and extreme wear. Not this coin, though. Rare thus. £385

WI-9075: 1773 Exceptionally Rare Irish George III Copper Halfpenny. Second "London" coinage, type III, Spink 6614. This is a so-called impossible date, 1775 being the first date in the second coinage series, other than the 1774 pattern, which I've never seen but am assured it exists. The date is completely unambiguous - 1773 - so what gives? If you look on the internet, you might stumble across a website stating that the Irish 1773 halfpenny exists as a rarer pattern than the 1774. I'm dubious as to the legitimacy of this coin but am open-minded enough to welcome any evidence. However, even if the 1773 pattern halfpenny does exist, this coin is not it. Here we have a contemporary counterfeit or, depending on your definition, an evasion. Contemporary counterfeits were known to have been struck in Birmingham and shipped to Ireland to supplement the meagre 1st (1766 and 1769) and second (1775, 1776, 1781 and 1782) issues. We have an official figure of 50 tons of 1766 and 50 tones of 1769 copper halfpence being struck in London. The later dates were substantially less than 50 tones. There were no farthings. 50 tons might seem a lot of coin but was in fact completely inadequate for the requirement in Ireland, hence the need to supplement. These contemporary counterfeits were derived from poor dies, were lightweight, being of dubious metal content and were often made to look "worn" before release into circulation (a worn coin attracted much less scrutiny) by a number of ingenious, albeit ham-fisted methods. Evasions were the same as contemporary counterfeits with one very important difference - they were NOT direct copies of Regal coinage. The theory was that if and when people got caught and prosecuted for issuing fake coinage into circulation (a very serious offence indeed, attracting stiff draconian penalties), the counterargument in court would be that these "Evasions" were simply unofficial, private tokens as they were not copying the real coinage. A 1773 Irish halfpenny is technically an evasion because it doesn't exist as a Regal coin but the strength of argument in a court of law in the late 1700's would be tenuous in the extreme! This coin is not recorded as an evasion in the excellent and comprehensive COBWRIGHT publication by Malachy Greensword (and as he did include some 1781 halfpennies as evasions), nor the equally iconic team of Paul Withers et uxor in their Galata Evasion Halfpennies section. See old tickets here.

Two things:

1. The coin is in remarkable grade for any 1st or 2nd issue Irish halfpenny.

2. The dies that were used were what is termed High Execution dies.

The hair on George III was always difficult to get right on the non-Regal dies but it generally wasn't a problem as by the time the coin had been messed around with at the "mint", there wouldn't be much hair left to see. On this coin we have virtually all the hair but as you can see, it's too simplistic compared to the Regal issue. The die orientation on this coin is irregular, being 150 degrees, which is actually quite strange - why go to all the trouble of sinking high execution dies as well as good weight planchets, only to mess up on the easiest thing? It should be 180 degrees. Another indicator is the reverse crowned harp device - it's a tad too squashed in around the lettering. Most conclusively, the coin is off-struck (actually a desirable trait amongst some collectors) showing us clearly that the obverse and reverse are not surrounded by a toothed outer border derived from the collar holding the planchet in place but rather by an outer circle of pellets which were added to the dies. The weight is fairly good, the copper content looks good so again, what gives? The point of issuing fakes into circulation was, and this is a simplistic example, to send out something that cost you 1/4d to produce in order that you could pass it as 1/2d. Double your money. That couldn't be the case here though, plus the dies are way too good for one of these back-street factories to have created. In summary, a high execution, high grade example of an Irish 1773 halfpenny, a date that I have never seen or heard the like of in all my years of having a toe dipped into this particularly interesting area of numismatics. Find another! £495

Provenance:

ex Spink

WI-9104: 1781 George III Irish Copper Halfpenny in High Grade. Type III, "London" coinage, Spink 6614. Lustrous with hints of red bloom. Graded About Uncirculated but realistically, gEF. We have an official figure of 50 tons of 1766 and 50 tones of 1769 copper halfpence being struck in London with the later dates, including 1781, being substantially less than 50 tones. There were no farthings. 50 tons might seem a lot of coin but was in fact completely inadequate for the requirement in Ireland, which entirely explains the over circulated, worn state of virtually all George III copper coins today. Not so this coin - you just do not see these coins in this grade. £475

Provenance:

ex Alexander Christopher collection

Post 1800 Coinage

1d’s

1/2d’s

WI-5623: 1805 Irish Copper Halfpenny. Ex Colin Cooke collection. £95

WI-6548: 1805 Irish GILT-PROOF Copper Halfpenny. Plain edge, EF or better. £265