Vintage Irish Pre-Decimal & Decimal Coin Lot.

Selling a nostalgic collection of vintage Irish pre-Euro coins. Great starter lot for a new collector or anyone looking for a piece of Irish history.

Lot includes 29 coins in total:
• 1 x Scarce 1940 Pre-Decimal Penny (Hen & Chicks)
• 19 x Other Pre-Decimal Pennies (dating up to 1968)
• 5 x 20 Pence coins (Horse design, featuring 1986 and 2000 dates)
• 3 x 10 Pence coins (Salmon)
• 4 x Mixed decimal fractions (2p, 5p, 1/2p).

The majority of the coins—including the large pennies, 10p, and 20p pieces—features the work of English sculptor Percy Metcalfe.

Metcalfe also designed the uniform obverse side of the coins featuring the Irish Harp, meticulously modeled after the historic 14th-century "Brian Boru Harp.

When Ireland switched over to the decimal system on "Decimal Day" in 1971, three brand-new bronze denominations were introduced: the 1/2p, 1p, and 2p pieces. Prominent Irish female sculptor and artist Gabriel Hayes was commissioned to design them.

The Theme: Rather than farm animals, Hayes drew inspiration directly from historical Irish art. Her beautiful, intricate reverse designs feature stylized ornamental birds adapted directly from ancient illuminated Celtic manuscripts, most notably the Book of Kells.