Owner Comments:
Pictured above is a 1723 Wood's Silver Pattern Hibernia Farthing graded SP 64+ by PCGS. It has been variously categorized as Martin 3.2 - Bc.10, Breen 173, and W-12500. The coin's reflective proof surfaces exhibit sharp details, and natural bright silver luster, with iridescent blue, gold, and red toning around the peripheries. Although some of these coins have been slabbed as mint state or proofs, the specimen designation implies they were struck as gifts, for presentation, or for collectors rather than for general circulation.
All Hibernia coins are dated 1722, 1723, or 1724. These pieces display no denomination, but come in two sizes: the farthing, which averages 22 mm in diameter; and the halfpence of 26 mm. Although as many as 1,595,000 were struck in copper, a mere 37 silver Farthing Hibernias have been graded by PCGS, 11 by NGC, with some possible resubmissions.
The obverse features a right facing portrait of George I. Of the 3 varieties of Hibernia Farthings struck in silver or off-silver variants, this one is characterized by the king's nose pointing between the I and A in Gratia. The peripheral legend translates into George, King By The Grace Of God. The reverse displays a seated effigy facing left, holding a palm branch in her right hand, with an adjacent 11 stringed harp, the symbol of Ireland. The word Hibernia (Ireland) and the date surround the central device. All specimens exhibit a plain edge. These coins were minted in Bristol, located in West England, using a drop hammer press.
HISTORY - William Wood, of humble Huguenot upbringing, and from Wolverhampton, England was the motivating force behind both the Hibernia coinage, intended to circulate in Ireland, and the Rosa Americana pieces, produced as a distinctly American coinage for the "American Plantations". Both patents, that ran nearly concurrently in time, were intended to help alleviate a chronic shortage of small change in their respective venues. In addition to owning several copper, zinc, and tin mines, as well as various timber interests, Wood and his father-in-law ran factories to fashion their metals into usable objects. Wood's plan was to turn a handsome profit from his coining ventures through seigniorage, that is, the spread between what it cost to manufacture the pieces, and their ultimate face value. Mammoth startup costs, including the need to bribe influential people to secure royal patents, virtually guaranteed the financial failure of the venture.
Wood confronted an unexpected obstacle when, in August 1724, Jonathan Swift, the Irish author of Gulliver's Travels, wrote a series of articles bad-mouthing Wood and his coinage. Wood countered, by appointing the renowned Sir Isaac Newton, the Master of The Royal Mint, to oversee the weighing and assaying of his coins. Swift did not succeed in totally derailing Wood's operations, but he did dissuade use of Hibernias by Ireland's elite; convinced George I to reduce the authorized coinage; and limited their traditional use as pay for soldiers.
A limited number of Hibernias did circulate in New England, NY, NJ, and Penn. - some were brought randomly by emigrants; others were sold, in bulk, at a discount to American merchants to use as small transactional change; much later, English coin dealers exported specimens to American dealers and collectors.