Ireland, 10 Shillings 1966, Easter Rising Anniv. KM.18, Uncirculated

In 1966, Ireland issued its first ever commemorative coin to mark the 50th anniversary of the Easter Rising in 1916. It has the portrait of Padraig (Patrick) Pearse, who was one of the leaders of the rebellion against British rule in Ireland. The coin was struck in .833 silver on a concave silver planchet, it is 30.5mm in diameter and 3.21mm thick. The reverse shows the statue of Cú Chulainn, an Irish mythological hero. Two million of these coin were struck but almost 80% of them were melted down when decimalization came in and silver was high. Today, it is, in our opinion, one of Ireland’s most important type coins and much underappreciated. Several years ago, a company in Ireland offered them in the Irish newspapers at €125 (£107) each. We recently bought a small hoard in uncirculated condition.