BRITISH COLONIES IN NORTH AMERICA

British Colonies in North America and Early States Coinage of the USA

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IR607 - Ireland / British Colonies in North America, George III (1760-1820), Copper Halfpenny, VOCE POPULI token coinage by Roche of South King Street, Dublin, 1760, VOCE POPULI, laureate head right, rev., HIBERNIA 1760, seated figure of Hibernia left with harp, (DF 572), very fine. $625

Struck by the Dublin button manufacturer Roche, this token coinage was intended to fill the gap left by a lack of government issued coinage. Roche was a Jacobite sympathizer and it has been suggested that the bust on the obverse is that of Charles Edward Stuart (the Young Pretender). This coinage like many other contemporary forgeries and token coinages was exported to Colonial America where it also circulated. Voce Populi means "voice of the people" or "the people's choice'.

William Wood's 'Hibernia' Coinage

This coinage was originally struck by William under Royal Patent at his Bristol foundry for use in Ireland. However, the coinage was deeply unpopular in Ireland due to it's lightweight relative to English issues. Dean Swift (aka Jonathan Swift, author of Gulliver's Travels and Dean of St. Patrick's, Dublin), anonymously penned the 'Drapier's Papers', a series of pamphlets highlighting the inequity of this inferior coinage and aroused public opinion against it. Following a general boycott the coinage was withdrawn and shipped to the American Colonies for use alongside Wood's Rosa America coinage.

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IR1014 - IRELAND / U.S. COLONIAL, George I (1714-1727), William Wood's 'Hibernia' Coinage, Copper Halfpenny, Type II, 1723, GEORGIUS DEI GRATIA REX, laureate head of George right, rev., HIBERNIA 1723, seated figure of Hibernia left, resting arm on harp and holding palm branch, (S.6601), very fine. $145	IR1007 - IRELAND / U.S. COLONIAL, George I (1714-1727), William Wood's 'Hibernia' Coinage, Copper Halfpenny, Type II, 1723, GEORGIUS DEI GRATIA REX, laureate head of George right, rev., HIBERNIA 1723, seated figure of Hibernia left, resting arm on harp and holding palm branch, (S.6601), very fine. $145	IR1013 - IRELAND / U.S. COLONIAL, George I (1714-1727), William Wood's 'Hibernia' Coinage, Copper Halfpenny, Type II, 1724, GEORGIUS DEI GRATIA REX, laureate head of George right, rev., HIBERNIA 1724 (continuous), seated figure of Hibernia left, resting arm on harp and holding palm branch, (S.6601), almost very fine. $130
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IR1008 - IRELAND / U.S. COLONIAL, George I (1714-1727), William Wood's 'Hibernia' Coinage, Copper Halfpenny, Type II, 1723, GEORGIUS DEI GRATIA REX, laureate head of George right, rev., HIBERNIA 1723, seated figure of Hibernia left, resting arm on harp and holding palm branch, (S.6601), very fine. $145	IR1009 - IRELAND / U.S. COLONIAL, George I (1714-1727), William Wood's 'Hibernia' Coinage, Copper Halfpenny, Type II, 1723, GEORGIUS DEI GRATIA REX, laureate head of George right, rev., HIBERNIA 1723, seated figure of Hibernia left, resting arm on harp and holding palm branch, (S.6601), very fine. $145	IR1010 - IRELAND / U.S. COLONIAL, George I (1714-1727), William Wood's 'Hibernia' Coinage, Copper Halfpenny, Type II, 1723, GEORGIUS DEI GRATIA REX, laureate head of George right, rev., HIBERNIA 1723, seated figure of Hibernia left, resting arm on harp and holding palm branch, (S.6601), almost very fine. $105
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IR1011 - IRELAND / U.S. COLONIAL, George I (1714-1727), William Wood's 'Hibernia' Coinage, Copper Halfpenny, Type II, 1723, GEORGIUS DEI GRATIA REX, laureate head of George right, rev., HIBERNIA 1723, seated figure of Hibernia left, resting arm on harp and holding palm branch, (S.6601), very fine. $145		IR1012 - IRELAND / U.S. COLONIAL, George I (1714-1727), William Wood's 'Hibernia' Coinage, Copper Farthing, Type III, 1723, GEORGIUS DEI GRATIA REX, laureate head of George right, rev., HIBERNIA 1723, seated figure of Hibernia left, resting arm on harp and holding palm branch, (S.6601), almost very fine. $125