Pattern Irish Æ Reul
Four Known to Brady

Triton XVIII, Lot: 1769. Estimate $2000. Sold for $4000. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

IRELAND, Saorstát Éireann (Irish Free State). 1922-1937. Pattern Æ Reul – Sixpence (21mm, 3.31 g, 12h). Lorioli Castelli’s (Milan) mint. Dies by Morbiducci. Dated 1927. · saorstát éIrean ·, harp; · 1927 · below, PROVA to lower right / Hound standing left, head reverted; · ReuL ·/ 6 in exergue; above, F. MOR=/BIDVCCI. Brady, Gerard, “The Morbiducci Patterns, An Enquiry,” in NumCirc LXXXIV.6 (June 1976), p. 236-8, 28-31; SCBC –; D&F –; cf. KM Pr5 (nickel). EF, some spotting. Rare – Brady knew of only four specimens in bronze.

The Irish Free State was established in 1926, formally ending centuries of British rule. The new nation, desiring a coinage distinct from that of their previous leaders, soon formed a committee with the aim of selecting new and uniquely Irish coin designs. With the poet W.B. Yeats as the chair, committee members reviewed submissions from Irish, English, and continental artists. Eventually, in an attempt to avoid inflammatory political or religious messages, the group decided on an agricultural theme, highlighting the natural bounty of Ireland.