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1 Shilling - James I Second Bust
| Issuer | Ireland |
|---|---|
| Year | 1603-1604 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Reverse description | A crowned Irish harp is centrally positioned within a beaded inner circle, serving as the principal device of the reverse. The harp, a long-standing symbol of the Kingdom of Ireland, is rendered in the style typical of early Stuart coinage. A Latin legend encircles the design, drawn from Psalm 68, invoking divine authority. The overall composition is characteristic of hammered silver coinage of the period. |
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| Reverse lettering | EXVRGAT · DEVS · DISSIPENTVR · INIMICI (Translation: Let God arise and let his enemies be scattered) |
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| Additional information |
James I inherited the Irish coinage problem along with the crown. His predecessor Elizabeth I had debased Irish silver so aggressively — reducing fineness to as low as one part silver in four — that the island's monetary system was effectively wrecked by the time James acceded in 1603. This shilling was part of the immediate remedial coinage struck at the Tower of London for Irish circulation, returned to a respectable sterling fineness as a deliberate policy of monetary rehabilitation.
The "Second Bust" designation distinguishes it from the near-simultaneous First Bust issue of the same year, the two separated by subtle portrait punch differences documented in the series.