Irish Coins & Tokens
-------->Remember, postage is included<--------
Irish / American (Colonial)
Halfpennies&
Farthings
WI-7576:
Circa 1674
Charles II Copper St Patrick’s Farthing.
Brass anti counterfeiting plug under the obverse crown with excellent
detail both sides. No damage or
repairs. Spink 6569. Struck on a large flan (25mm diameter) but
still termed “Small Size”. This is
undoubtedly the best grade example that I have ever handled. 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. £995
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-7575:
Rare Type 1
1722 George 1st Irish William Wood’s Copper Halfpenny. Slabbed
under NGC and graded by them as AU 50, meaning about Uncirculated. Spink 6600.
Extra images here
and here. Rare in this grade, rarer still being this
first issue. Incidentally, when you
visit the NGC page for this coin, it states that the current market value,
something it helpfully does for all NGC slabbed
coins, is £658, although bizarly, EF grade in Spink
2020 is £1,200 in EF and NGC seem to think this coin is a grade above EF?! Contemporary planchet faults at 12 o’clock and 3 o’clock, otherwise a wonderful coin in both rarity and grade. £445
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
WI-5485: 1642-44 Charles 1st Irish
Confederate Catholics Issue Halfpenny.
Struck in Kilkenny by the Irish Catholics who
remained loyal to Charles 1st.
It was a very crude issue (shape, die and strike) with very few examples
surviving due to the nature of the metal.
A rare early Irish coin. £425
Irish The Great Rebellion, Coinages of the Lords
Justices Issue - "Ormonde Money"
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 1st
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-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
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
WI-6663: 1689 Irish Gun Money
Shilling. Struck January 1689. This is the rare Spink 6581MM – ERA for FRA
error. 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”. £135
Sixpences
WI-7382:
1689 Irish Civil
War Emergency Coinage “Gun Money” Sixpence.
Struck in Dublin July of 1689. The sixpence is a rarer denomination than the
shillings and halfcrowns – you seldom see them today. 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 (perhaps) 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”. Very nice grade, the rarer “no stop after
DEI” variety, and benefiting from being ex John Rainey collection. £145
Irish James II Civil War Issues - "Pewter Money"
WI-7394:
1690 Irish James
II Emergency Pewter Money Penny.
Issued as part of the Gun Money Civil War coinage, but very much on the
tail-end when the supply of “latten” or scrap base metal was very in dire
shortage. Things were getting so bad
that a warrant was issued for the coining of two guns (presumably obsolete
ones) from Dublin castle. It then got worse still: writing to Mary of Modena, James II's wife in
France, the duke of Tyrconnell (the lord lieutenant
of Ireland) included in a list of 'things we cannot subsist here without' a
request that 'forty guns may be sent us to coine into
money'. At the same time that brass
latten was becoming almost impossible to source, the public were coming to the
very end of their already thinly stretched patience with this non-money. Their contempt for the coins and those who
had issued them was unlimited, and they talked of 'their Tinkerly
Treasure' and 'their brass imaginary coin made only valuable by the magic of
their priests'. This was never more so
than during the Pewter Money period. In
January 1691, the Irish finally admitted that nothing was going to restore the
value of their emergency coinages. They
announced that the brass & pewter would be withdrawn from circulation on 15
March. Those who had emergency coinage were to bring them to the treasury where
they would be given receipts which would entitle them to full repayment when
James was restored to his throne. Most
people knew that neither was likely to happen.
This pewter issue, the “successor” to Gun Money, had a copper alloy
plug. It was incredibly susceptible to
both wear and corrosion. Very few
examples remain extant and hardly any of them are in anything like this
grade. Type II, Spink 6589. Readers may be interested to know that the
rare 1690 pewter money halfpenny in silver is all a later re-strike, probably
done in France some time later. What little precious metals they had at this
time went to pay the troops in France because they refused to accept the
Latten or Pewter coinage. Further, all
silver and gold Gun Money proofs are again later re-strikes using genuine
dies. This coin ex John Rainey
collection. Choice. £2,950
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
Henry III
WI-5929: Irish Henry III Hammered
Silver Voided Long Cross Penny.
Class 1b, RICARD of Dublin. 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. 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
WI-5519: Irish Edward I Hammered
Silver Penny. Waterford mint, second coinage, trefoil of pellets. Good grade.
£129
Edward IV
Anonymous “Crown” Issue
WI-7500: Irish Edward IV Anonymous
“Crown” Groat. Edward IV first reign
coinage of 1460-63. Dublin mint. Spink 6272.
Struck at 45 grains, an unusual specific weight unique to Ireland, being 75% that of the
English groats, in an attempt to stem the flow of silver over to the
Continent. The anonymous aspect of this
early issue was political, based entirely on the transfer of sovereignty from
the Lancastrians to the Yorkists. Large crown in tressure
of arches with trefoils at the cusps / Long cross pattee,
pellets in quarters with x2 extra annulets in second and fourth quarters. Toned, crystalline with some minor edge loss. Sold with an old auction slip together with a
collector’s cabinet ticket. A very rare,
iconic coin. £2,250
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-6304: Irish Edward IV
Hammered Silver Penny. Standard
cross & pellets issue but the rarer Heavy coinage of 1465-70. Extra pellet in two of the reverse
quarters. DV on reverse signifies Dublin mint. It is thought that these coins were not
always heavily clipped, rather they were full size dies struck on very short
flans. This one less short than
most. Old, detailed ticket. A very strong portrait being slightly better
than the Spink plate coin. £145
WI-5866: Irish Edward IV Hammered
Silver Penny. Rarer Heavy coinage of
1465-70. No obverse marks. Bust C, likely Dublin mint. £65
Cross & Pellets “LIGHT” issue
Groats
WI-6607: Irish
Edward IV Hammered Silver Groat.
Light Cross & Pellets coinage of 1472-78. G on breast (Mint Master Germyn
Lynch), Dublin mint. Spink
6366. Incorporating many elements of the
earlier heavy issue, perhaps not surprising as the same dies were often
used. However, the Sun initial mark
unambiguously put this as Light Coinage.
A lot rarer than Spink suggest.
£295
WI-7204:
Medieval Irish
Edward IV Hammered Silver Groat.
Second reign, third “Light” coinage of 1473. Rarer Waterford mint town. Initial mark Rosette. Spink 6369C – “G” below bust indicating Germyn Lynche (an interesting and
somewhat controversial gentleman) as the moneyer. No extra obverse marks but x2 saltires in the reverse quarters. 25mm, 2.04g.
Sold with a collector’s cabinet ticket along with a detailed auction
information slip. Exceptionally nice
grade for issue. £875
WI-7276:
Edward IV
Medieval IRISH Hammered Silver Groat.
A very interesting coin, being to all intents and purposes a Second
Reign, third light cross & pellets issue Dublin mint issue groat of 1473
only. DNW, Nigel Mills, myself – we all
attributed it as Spink 6366E: a later, Dublin mint issue with pellets in some
spandrels and in two reverse quarters.
However, it is actually a First Reign, first cross & pellets issue
of 1465 only, initial mark Pierced Cross – Spink 6306A The weight is 31.8 grains (2.06 grams) which
is low for this issue (hence the thought it was the later light issue) but
saying that, similar weight Spink 6306A examples do exist. The obverse of this coin is die linked to one
sold by Spink (March 2017, Auction 17004, lot #377). Thank you to David Collins for his expert
knowledge and assessment. £395
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 1470-78. Burns’ DU-6, Dublin. Spink
6365. £79
WI-5967: Irish Edward IV Hammered
Silver Penny. Light cross &
pellets issue of 1470-78. Burns’ DU-6, Dublin. Spink
6365. An interesting coin as there is a
partial second bust and pellet to the left.
£95
WI-6498: Irish Edward IV Hammered
Silver Penny. Light cross &
pellets issue of 1470-78. Burns’ DU-22, Dublin. Spink
6367. An interesting coin: a Type 22
with x2 mullets by crown but an additional six pointed mullet (similar to those
seen on Alexander III second issue coins) on the reverse inner beaded
circle. Better grade. £75
WI-7283:
A++ Edward IV
Medieval Irish Hammered Silver Penny.
Second reign, third “Light” cross & pellets coinage of 1473
only. Rarer Drogheda mint. Pellets by crown and neck would be Burns’
Dr-13 (which, according to Burns, parallels to Spink 6375, which it clearly
doesn’t. The correct Spink reference
would be Spink 6374H). HOWEVER, whilst
this coin is certainly Burns’ style E and is certainly Drogheda mint (Dublin is
a rounder face), this coin has an extra pellet on the neck with is completely
unrecorded in both Spink and the acknowledged go-to reference for Irish coins –
Irish Hammered Pennies of Edward IV to Henry VII, fifth issue, by Jasper
Burns. There can be no muling because there is no obverse die recorded with this
fifth pellet. 0.52 grams and about
"as struck" in grade - these Irish coins may look clipped but in
actual fact were struck on approximately 50% reduced flans. In a recent auction, a really nice Edward IV
Irish penny (not an unrecorded example as this coin is) went for a four figure
sum, before commission. A rare,
unrecorded coin is spectacularly high grade.
Choice. £565
WI-7415: Edward IV High Grade
Medieval Hammered Silver Irish Penny.
Second reign, Third “Light” Cross & Pellets coinage of 1473. Dublin mint, mullets by crown, quatrefoil
in centre of reverse cross. Spink
6373K. 0.47g, which on the face of it
appears very low. In fact, for Irish
coinage (and a lot of Edward IV English pennies), this is a good weight as
these were predominantly struck on small, very underweight flans, often as a
money making initiative by the officials in charge. English pence during this period followed
much the same path: Lord Stewartby (English Coins
1180 – 1551 by Spink, 2009) states: “The flow of ill-struck and often illegible
pence from the (English) northern Episcopal mints continued unabated. (Archbishop) Thomas Rotherham of York was arrested by Richard in June
1483, but soon released.” The production
of short flan, underweight coins (ie face value one
penny but actual silver content some way below that) would obviously be financially
lucrative for the person doing it.
Archbishop Rotherham would appear to have got away with just that as he
was released with all charges dropped.
The practise continued on through to Richard’s reign in England AND Ireland.
A high grade coin with an excellent portrait, being possibly even better
than the Spink plate
coin – the very best example they could lay their hands on with their vast
black book of contacts. Most rare in
this grade and with this much legend.
£365
WI-7611:
Edward IV Rare
Mint / Rare Type Irish Hammered Silver Penny. Second reign, type 9 “Issues of the
Ungoverned Mints”, circa 1470-77. Limerick mint. This issue immediately preceded the Suns
& Roses coinage of 1479. In this
period, coinage was issued outside of the governance of the Pale (Irish: An Pháil) authorities, namely Limerick, Cork and Wexford. The Pale was the parts of Ireland directly under the control of the
English government in the Late Middle Ages.
This issue was brought about by the Desmond Rebellion (the Desmond
Earldom stretched over much of Munster in southwest Ireland but also included
Limerick, Cork and Wexford), mainly because the Earl, who had adopted certain
Irish ways and customs, resented being told to be more English. Of the three Earldoms (Kildare, Ormond, and
Desmond), Desmond was the most remote from England’s control. Clear rosettes by the neck (they are rosettes
and not cinquefoils) and a clear mint signature. Spink 6383, Burns L-23, which is a type 23
with only 8 recorded examples. A very
rare and historically significant coin. 
£545
Fitzgeralds of Kildare “Geraldine” Issue (1487)
WI-7012:
Irish Hammered
Silver “Three Crowns” Geraldine Groat.
August to October 1487 only.
Struck under the Fitzgeralds of Kildare, a powerful
family who took control for a brief period after Lambert Simnel’s
abortive attempt to win the crown (after Richard III, preceding Henry
VII). Spink 6432. An extremely rare issue in lower grade and
virtually unheard of in this VF grade.
Sold with a detailed information slip.
Choice. £1,450
Richard III
WI-7148:
Richard III
Hammered Silver Irish Penny. Cross
& Pellets coinage of 1483-5. Dublin mint: [CIVI] TAS [DV]B L[IN]. Annulets by neck, distinctive Richard III
face: Burns DU-17R, Spink 6410 (2020: £3,500 VF). Small of flan, as always - it is thought that these coins were not always heavily
clipped; rather they were full size dies struck on very short flans. A very rare coin indeed. £1,895
Henry VII
WI-7030: Irish Henry VII Hammered
Silver *CHOICE* Groat. Late portrait
issue of 1496-1505. Dublin mint – type 1A: arched
crown with bust breaking the plain tressure. Spink 6455.
As you will undoubtedly be aware, these issues are nearly always
problematic – double strikes (particularly the reverses), poor strikes, damages
etc. This is a superb example and easily
choice for issue. £795
WI-6912: Irish Henry VII Hammered
Silver “Three Crowns” Groat. 1485-97, this is the earliest type and also
the rarer of the two varieties normally seen – DOMINVS hYBERNIE
both sides. Spink 6415. Further, this coin has the legend starting at
10 o’clock which is most unusual. Die linked to an example illustrated in
Medieval Anglo-Irish Coins by Michael Dolley,
p33. Rare. £345
Henry VIII
WI-7266:
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.
See here
for old tickets – ex Spink, ex Bosworth.
Rare. £625
WI-7099:
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.
This coin encapsulated (PCGS) and graded VF35. Rare.
£625
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 practice 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). £269
WI-7177:
Irish Henry VIII
Hammered Silver Groat or Fourpence. First “Harp” issue (1534-40) but right
at the very end – Spink 6475 – which is dated to 1540 only. The earlier 1st issue coins were
all dedicated to three wives of Henry but as a pattern was emerging, this
practise stopped, although the change of wives clearly did not. This last 1st issue is the rarest,
being rarer than all the wife issues.
Interestingly, 1st issue coins are at a 0.842 fineness
(typically in the UK we use 0.925 today) but this coin
has all the characteristics of being more like a second issue (0.758 fineness)
silver. Funds were squandered under
Henry’s watch and one of the ways they sought to remedy this was to debase the
coinage. For those interested, the Irish
silver in coinage was “watered down” as follows: 1st issue = 0.842,
2nd issue = 0.758, 3rd issue = 0.833, 4th
issue = 0.666, 5th issue = 0.500and 6th issue =
0.250. The term “Old Copper Nose” was given
under Henry’s reign as the latter silver coins literally had a copper colour
after a bit of circulation, especially around the centre of the bust, ie around the nose area.
Sold with a detailed auction printout.
£325
WI-6906: Irish Henry VIII “Harp”
Groat. Second (2nd)
Harp issue, Spink 6479. 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 up to x4 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 practice led to inflation with the hoarding of earlier, high
silver content coins. This coin
particularly nice grade with an old ticket shown here. It would be nice to think you could buy this
coin for the £24 stated but alas, you can’t as this was the price in the
1970’s! £325
WI-6394: Irish Henry VIII Hammered
Silver Groat. 1543. Third (3rd)
Harp Issue, i.m. rose. “HR” by harp.
Nice grade. £225
WI-6849: Henry VIII Posthumous
(struck under Edward VI) IRISH Hammered Silver Threepence. In the name of Henry but struck after his
death, under his son, Edward VI. This is
the last issue, type IV, with the Tower bust – it is thought a lot of these
Irish coins were actually struck using dies made in England. Spink 6491.
A rarer denomination and a coin in very nice grade indeed, especially
considering this was the billon or “watered down silver” period (it actually
got worse in Ireland in 1552 with some coins being so debased that they looked
like copper coins!). £700 in VF in the
very outdated Spink price guide. £395
Edward VI
WI-6395: Irish Henry VIII Dublin
Hammered Threepence. Actually struck under Edward VI,
1547-50. Type IV, Dublin mint. Strong
detail on this debased silver issue.
£165
Philip & Mary
WI-5778: 1555 Philip & Mary
Irish Facing Busts Shilling. Debased
hammered silver - nice grade for this usually poor issue. £325
WI-5363: 1556 Philip & Mary
Irish Facing Busts Groat. Debased
hammered silver - nice grade for this usually poor issue. £325
Elizabeth 1st
WI-7348:
1558 Irish
Elizabeth 1st 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-7140:
1558 Elizabeth 1st
Irish Hammered Billon Silver Groat.
First issue, preceding the 1561 fine silver issue, at 0.250 silver
content. Spink 6504.
Ex Walter Wilkinson
collection, accompanied by all his tickets.
The Walter Wilkinson collection was one of the best collections of
Elizabeth 1st coinage ever put together. Throughout the long life of the collection,
Walter was constantly buying in better grade examples to improve the collection. This coin is a superb example which I have
certainly not shown through my poor images.
It’s a VF coin, regardless of the atrocious nature of the issue in
general and the provenance is as good as it gets. £575
WI-6671: 1558 Irish Elizabeth 1st
Hammered Billon Silver Groat. Base
issue of 1558 only. Spink 6504. Very good grade for issue. £185
WI-5542: 1601 Irish Elizabeth 1st
Hammered Copper Penny. Initial mark
Star and on a generous planchets. 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. This is a very nice example with clear detail. £155
WI-5575: 1602 Irish Elizabeth 1st
Hammered Copper Penny. Initial mark Martlet. 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. The rarer date.
£195
WI-7210:
1601-02
Elizabeth 1st 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. This coin very high grade for issue. £345
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
James II
WI-7139:
1685 Irish James
II Copper Halfpenny. The regular
issue (before the Gun Money issues), under Sir John Knox, Lord Mayor of Dublin.
Spink 6576. Struck with a soft
copper alloy which resulted in much wear through relatively little
circulation. You rarely see high grade
Irish “regular” coppers from this period (Irish W&M wear even worse) but
this coin is the exception. Comes with a
detailed information slip which grades at abt VF for
issue. £349
WI-5950: 1686 Irish James II
Copper Halfpenny. Regular coinage
issue (prior to the Civil War). Nice
grade for issue. Spink 6576. £95
WI-6766: 1688 Irish James II Copper
Halfpenny. Regular coinage issue
(prior to the Civil War). Nice grade for
issue and the rarest of the x4 dates, apart from 1687 where virtually non are
extant. Sold with old tickets. Spink 6576.
£165
William & Mary
WJC-7475: HIGH GRADE and CHOICE 1691
William & Mary Scottish Copper Bawbee. Circulated at a sixpence. En medaille die rotation. Dublin. An act of Privy Council in August 1691
authorised a small issue of copper coins (Bawbees and
Bodles combined), being up to 500 stones in weight or
less per year, but never to be exceeded.
This act carried on when Mary died into the reign of William II, but
effectively, these were the last Scottish copper coins to date. Initial mark
Cross of Five Pellets (many people don’t even realise these things have initial
marks as the grade seen dictates there is usually nothing to be seen!), Spink
5666. Collectors will be aware that you
hardly ever come across Bawbees (of any reign) in VF
– they were from soft metal and simply did not survive the rigours of
circulation. Further, the obverse dies
of William & Mary bawbees specifically were
simply not up to the job as there was too much design to engrave with the
conjoined busts to give a good result.
The trick with these things is to look at the reverse of any coins in
order to gauge the grade as often, as in this case, the obverse side would have
left the mint fairly close to how it looks in this coin, ie
not a patch on the reverse. This coin is
approaching EF for issue. One or two bawbees of this grade recently came up in Heritage Auctions
where they all achieved four figure prices.
I don’t expect to ever have Bawbees of this
quality ever again – they are that rare.
£695
WJC-7476: HIGH GRADE and CHOICE 1692
William & Mary Scottish Copper Bawbee. Circulated at a sixpence. 180 degree die rotation. Dublin. An act of Privy Council in August 1691
authorised a small issue of copper coins (Bawbees and
Bodles combined), being up to 500 stones in weight or
less per year, but never to be exceeded.
This act carried on when Mary died into the reign of William II, but
effectively, these were the last Scottish copper coins to date. Initial mark
Two Small Trefoils, (many people don’t even realise these things have initial
marks as the grade seen dictates there is usually nothing to be seen!), Spink
5668. Collectors will be aware that you
hardly ever come across Bawbees (of any reign) in VF
– they were from soft metal and simply did not survive the rigours of
circulation. Further, the obverse dies
of William & Mary bawbees specifically were
simply not up to the job as there was too much design to engrave with the
conjoined busts to give a good result.
The trick with these things is to look at the reverse of any coins in
order to gauge the grade as often, as in this case, the obverse side would have
left the mint fairly close to how it looks in this coin, ie
not a patch on the reverse. This coin is
EF for issue – Spink don’t think any coins in this grade exist for this year,
as evidenced in Spink 2020. One or two
bawbees of this grade, possibly not quite as good as
this one in particular, recently came up in Heritage Auctions where they all
achieved four figure prices. I don’t
expect to ever have Bawbees of this quality ever
again – they are that rare. £895
WJC-7477: HIGH GRADE and CHOICE 1692
William & Mary Scottish Copper Bawbee. Circulated at a sixpence. En medaille die rotation. Dublin. An act of Privy Council in August 1691 authorised
a small issue of copper coins (Bawbees and Bodles combined), being up to 500 stones in weight or less
per year, but never to be exceeded. This
act carried on when Mary died into the reign of William II, but effectively,
these were the last Scottish copper coins to date. Initial mark Cross of Five
Pellets, or Rosette, (many people don’t even realise these things have initial
marks as the grade seen dictates there is usually nothing to be seen!), Spink
5667. Collectors will be aware that you
hardly ever come across Bawbees (of any reign) in VF
– they were from soft metal and simply did not survive the rigours of
circulation. Further, the obverse dies
of William & Mary bawbees specifically were
simply not up to the job as there was too much design to engrave with the
conjoined busts to give a good result.
The trick with these things is to look at the reverse of any coins in
order to gauge the grade as often, as in this case, the obverse side would have
left the mint fairly close to how it looks in this coin, ie
not a patch on the reverse. This coin is
EF for issue – Spink don’t think any coins in this grade exist for this year,
as evidenced in Spink 2020. One or two bawbees of this grade, possibly not quite as good as this
one in particular, recently came up in Heritage Auctions where they all
achieved four figure prices. I don’t
expect to ever have Bawbees of this quality ever
again – they are that rare. £795
WJC-7478: HIGH GRADE, CHOICE &
VERY, VERY RARE 1692 DOUBLE DATED William & Mary Scottish Copper Bawbee.
Circulated at a sixpence. En
medaille die rotation. Dublin. This is the extremely rare 1692 error which
left the mint with the date on BOTH SIDES.
It is the ‘…ET 1692 REGINA’ error under Spink
5666. An act of Privy Council in August
1691 authorised a small issue of copper coins (Bawbees
and Bodles combined), being up to 500 stones in
weight or less per year, but never to be exceeded. This act carried on when Mary died into the
reign of William II, but effectively, these were the last Scottish copper coins
to date. Initial mark Vertical Line of Three Pellets – unrecorded in Spink –
(many people don’t even realise these things have initial marks as the grade
seen dictates there is usually nothing to be seen!). Collectors will be aware that you hardly ever
come across Bawbees (of any reign) in VF – they were
from soft metal and simply did not survive the rigours of circulation. Further, the obverse dies of William &
Mary bawbees specifically were simply not up to the
job as there was too much design to engrave with the conjoined busts to give a
good result. The trick with these things
is to look at the reverse of any coins in order to gauge the grade as often, as
in this case, the obverse side would have left the mint fairly close to how it
looks in this coin, ie not a patch on the
reverse. This coin is nearly EF for
issue but there are no better grade examples known for this rare double date
error. One or two bawbees
of this grade, possibly not quite as good as this one in particular, and
certainly not as rare as this variety, recently came up in Heritage Auctions
where they all achieved four figure prices.
I don’t expect to ever have Bawbees of this
quality & rarity ever again – they are that rare. £995
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-6678: 1694 William & Mary
Conjoined Busts Copper Halfpenny – an unrecorded error. A Dublin halfpence with the MA.RIA
error very clearly displayed on the obverse.
Spink 6597, although this variety is completely unrecorded in Spink as
well as the much more comprehensive Peck.
There is an argument which suggests that errors such as these were die
sinkers’ identifying markers as nobody else at the time would notice. We see this a great deal in the Commonwealth
silver series, in the form of missing / extra pellets and although that was
hammered and this is milled, Commonwealth and W&M were only 30 odd years apart. An important and rare variety. £155
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
William III
WI-5991: 1696 Irish William III
Copper Halfpenny. 1696 was the only
year William III struck the halfpenny and the halfpenny was the ONLY denomination
issued. This coin is better than the
Spink plate coin (S.6598) which tells you it is extremely good grade for
issue. £225
Post 1800 Coinage
1d’s
WI-5853: Irish 1805 George III
Large Copper Penny. Soho
coinage (Birmingham). Much rarer
than the halfpennies. £45
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
1/4d’s
WI-5922: 1806 Irish Copper
Farthing. Toned. £29
Irish Communion Tokens
WI-5590: Mid 1800’s IRISH Church
Communion Token. Presbyterian Church
of Ireland. 99.9% of all Communion Tokens are
Scottish. Burzinski
7552. £48
