The Central Bank of Ireland has opened its archives to the public for the first time and we hope that many unanswered questions of Irish numismatic interest can, at last, be answered. These archives include a range of materials created and acquired by the bank – such as objects, documents and ledgers dating from 1786…
The Half-Farthing This denomination was issued (for the first time) in 1828 – just a year after the third-farthing for use exclusively in Ceylon (now independent and known as Sri Lanka). Unlike the quarter- and third-farthing, the half-farthing it was made legal tender in the UK & Ireland in 1842 via a Royal Proclamation by…
Banking is a risky business. The recent financial crisis of 2007/08 is still fresh in the minds of the Irish public but there is almost three centuries of banking failures in Ireland – some were unfortunate, while others were fraudulent. And like nowadays, some got away with their crimes, while others went bankrupt and some…
The Third-Farthing The first of the fractional farthings to be issued was the third-farthing, which throughout the period of issue from 1827 to 1913 was minted exclusively for use in Malta. The island used British coins, but the grano, dating from before British rule, was valued at one-twelfth of a penny. As a result the…
The King’s Norton Mint Collection In 1889, Thomas Richard Bayliss in conjunction with his son, Thomas Abraham Bayliss, founded King’s Norton Metal Co. They would go on to become an important private mint and even supplied the Royal Mint via sub-contracting. In 1911 and 1912, the King’s Norton Metal Co supplied bronze blanks for pennies,…
GB & Ireland copper pennies (1825-60) are very sought after by collectors. They are often found in attic clearances and car boot sales in Ireland. The comparatively soft metal results in few coins surviving in higher grades. Many varieties exist and the main ones have been listed below. George IV Prior to ascension, George IV…
Introduction In 1911, the National Insurance Act, introduced on July 1st, created created an unusually large demand for bronze and silver coins. The Royal Mint could not meet this demand, so some of its production was sub-contracted to a private mint – The Heaton Mint, Birmingham. A massive 16,800,000 pennies were minted here in 1912…
Introduction According to Grace’s Guide – the leading source of historical information on industry and manufacturing in Britain – the King’s Norton Metal Company Limited provided the first competition to the Heaton, or Birmingham Mint when it was also sub-contracted to supply bronze blanks to the Royal Mint in 1912. Unlike the Heaton Mint, it…
A quarter-farthing was issued for use only in Ceylon between 1839 and 1853, and was never legal tender in the UK & Ireland. However, they are usually considered to be part of the UK coin series, as Ceylon used British currency at that time.
Introduction The Sinn Féin Bank, formally the Sinn Féin Co-operative People’s Bank was a co-operative bank in Ireland associated with Sinn Féin movement, which operated from August 1908 to October 1921. The Co-operative Bank was part of Griffith’s plan for national self-sufficiency. It was not a success, though it prepared the way for the later…
The Old Currency Exchange is a specialist dealer and valuer of Irish & GB coins, tokens and banknotes 