THE COIN COLLECTOR - World eBook Library

UNITED KINGDOM
and Colonial currencies. The former opens with
a series of barbarous imitations, emanating from Irish
chieftains or reguli, between the eighth and eleventh
centuries, of the Anglo-Saxon types, the earliest of
tolerable execution being those which closely resemble
the pennies of Ethelred II. of England. Canute struck
pennies for Ireland, but they are of great rarity. From
John, first as Lord of Ireland and then as King, com-
mences the regular and common series from a variety
of mints : Dublin, Waterford, Cork, Limerick, Trim,
Drogheda, Youghal, and Wexford. A peculiarity of
the more ancient coins is the enclosure of the portrait
in a triangle ; the system determined in 1822 ; but
there is no money of Edward VI. or of Anne ; and no
gold exists. We must consider the Inchinquin, Cork,
and Ormonde siege-pieces of Charles I. and the gun-
money of James II. as classable under the present head.
Elizabeth, James, and Charles I. struck small copper
coins representing halfpence and farthings with the harp,
which distinguishes the whole of this section from the
reign of Henry VIII., and procured for the silver six-
pences the name of harpers. The first genuine copper
coinage was in 1723, when Wood's halfpence and farth-
ings appeared with a bust similar to his Rosa Americana.
The series was carried on by George II., III., and IV.
and George III. issued silver tokens for 6s., 2s. 6d., 10d.,
and 5d. between 1804 and 1813 for the sister kingdom.
The prevailing characteristic of all this currency, except
the copper, is its light weight. The Irish harp on the
coins of Henry VIII. divides the initials of the King and
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