1/2 Crown - Ormonde: Siege coinage

Produced by the Confederate Catholics of Ireland at Kilkenny under the authority of the Marquess of Ormonde, these pieces were struck from melted plate silver — candlesticks, church vessels, and domestic flatware — during the military crisis of the early 1640s. The Confederate and Royalist forces needed coin to pay troops while the Dublin mint remained under Parliamentary pressure and regular supply lines collapsed. The irregular weight and planchet quality reflect exactly that improvised sourcing.

Spink 6545 encompasses considerable variation in die workmanship, as multiple engravers worked under field conditions.