Anne Irish Shilling

One of the more pragmatic quirks of the Anne Irish shilling is that it was often struck on planchets recycled from Spanish reales, a nod to Ireland's dependence on foreign silver inflows during the early 1700s.

These coins, issued between 1703 and 1714 under Queen Anne, featured a simple bust on the obverse and the Irish harp on the reverse, all in fine silver that sometimes showed the wear of prior lives as continental currency. Mintage figures are hazy; records from that period were spotty, and what's left doesn't specify exact numbers. They circulated widely in daily trade, a testament to their role in an era of economic flux.

As for myths, I've heard plenty about hidden treasures or royal curses, but that's just collector folklore. These were workaday pieces, not artifacts of grandeur. No one knows precisely how many survive today, though examples in good condition fetch interest among those who appreciate the metal's history.

The design's harp, by the way, looks a bit like it was sketched in a hurry—perhaps the engraver had other battles to fight.