Background: Nobody thinks about British George V bronze pennies without thinking about the famous 1933 penny rarity. It is, perhaps, the most well-known British penny and many schoolboy collectors started the hobby by checking their pocket change for a 1933. Since these pennies circulated in Ireland right up until 1971, many Irish collectors also hoped…
Background: Because of the large number of pennies already in circulation and the economic depression after WW2, there was no need to produce any more in 1950s Britain. That said, a new monarch in 1952 sparked off a huge demand for coronation coin sets and, in 1953, over 1.3 million Elizabeth II pennies were minted…
Date: 1927 Description: Country: Ireland Category: Irish Free State / Saorstát Éireann Pattern Notes: This is a ‘pattern’ coin entered by the Roman sculptor Publio Morbiducci (1889-1963) for the competition to design Ireland’s new money in 1928. Although unsuccessful, Morbiducci’s designs are considered to be some of the finest in terms of their…
Date: 1927 Description: Sales History: Dixon Noonan & Webb, London Auction: Coins, Paper Money, Tokens and Historical Medals Date: 12 December 2016 Estimate: £4,000-5,000 Hammer Price: ? Country: Ireland Category: Irish Free State / Saorstát Éireann Pattern Notes: This is a ‘pattern’ coin entered by the Roman sculptor Publio Morbiducci (1889-1963) for the competition to…
Date: 1679 Description: Country: Ireland Category: Charles II Token Notes: This token is interesting for a number of reasons: It was issued after the last proclamation of Charles II banning the use of such tokens. Prior to this issue, it was not uncommon for city mayors to issue tokens in their own name, though not…
Date: c. 1646 Description: Emergency issue from The Great Rebellion, 1642-1649. Gold Double Pistole (21mm, 6.61 g, 2h). Ormonde Money. Struck 1646. ‘4 : 9wtt : 7 : gr :’ in two lines / ‘4 : 9wtt : 7 : gr :’ in two lines. O’Sullivan, Gold dies 1/2; D&F 269; SCBC 6552. Extremely Fine (EF) Probably…
It is every metal detector’s dream to find something worth a million, although most of them do it for the exercise, the fresh air and the fun they have in researching their smaller finds. Its about the history. I was very surprised and impressed to discover that most detectorists donate their finds to local museums…
The new Irish 20p coin In 1982 the then Minister for Finance, Ray MacSharry, announced that a twenty or twenty-five pence coin might be designed and in August 1984 the twenty pence was chosen. The Arts Council of Ireland recommended the horse design. The twenty pence (20p) coin was introduced on 30th October 1986. It was first…
In 1937, a new constitution declaring Ireland a free state was established and the old designs for the coins of Ireland that featured the legend “Saorstat Eireann” or Irish Free State were changed to “Eire” to reflect the new constitution. The only known 1938 coins to feature that revised legend are: one halfcrown (currently unique…
The Old Currency Exchange is a specialist dealer and valuer of Irish & GB coins, tokens and banknotes 