1/2 Noble - Henry IV Heavy coinage, London mint

Henry IV's heavy coinage was struck to the old Edwardian standard — a deliberate political signal at the start of a usurper's reign, projecting continuity with the legitimate Plantagenet line he had displaced. The weight was unsustainable. Bullion hoarding and the chronic shortage of gold entering English mints forced a recoinage in 1412, reducing the noble's weight and inaugurating the light coinage series. Spink 1709 pieces saw fewer than thirteen years of production before the standard was abandoned entirely.