Maundy Money

The numismatic term for the week is "Maundy Money". Associated with the royal ceremony celebrating Maundy Thursday which is believed to go back to the reign of Edward II. The first `sets' can be made up from the hammered coins of Charles II but no real Maundy sets were made until the end of the reign of George III. A Maundy set consists of one of each of the denominations of fourpence, threepence, twopence and penny; mintages are low. Recipients of Maundy money get one penny for every year that the reigning monarch has been alive. So when Elizabeth II was 60, each person got 60 pence (six sets of four coins). When she was 61, they got six sets plus a 1 penny piece. When she was 62 they got six sets plus a 2 pence and so on.