The Ormonde Money, as this series is collectively known, was authorized by James Butler, 12th Earl of Ormonde, acting on behalf of the Crown in Dublin when the city was effectively cut off by the Irish Catholic Confederation. Bullion was sourced from melted plate — silverware, ecclesiastical objects, whatever could be requisitioned — which accounts for the notoriously inconsistent fineness found across surviving pieces.
The crudeness of execution is not incidental. Dublin Castle was operating under siege conditions with no access to trained die-engravers.
The Ormonde Money, as this series is collectively known, was authorized by James Butler, 12th Earl of Ormonde, acting on behalf of the Crown in Dublin when the city was effectively cut off by the Irish Catholic Confederation. Bullion was sourced from melted plate — silverware, ecclesiastical objects, whatever could be requisitioned — which accounts for the notoriously inconsistent fineness found across surviving pieces.
The crudeness of execution is not incidental. Dublin Castle was operating under siege conditions with no access to trained die-engravers.