A small grouping of miscellaneous early U.S. federal and colonial coinage consigned to Stack’s has yielded a heretofore unknown 1722 Wood’s Hibernia Halfpenny die variety. This discovery is only the second such new variety uncovered since the 2007 release of Sydney F. Martin’s landmark reference on the Wood’s Hibernia series entitled The Hibernia Coinage of William Wood (1722-1724). Martin’s research on this series is amazingly extensive, and has opened up a wealth of previously unpublished information to the numismatic community.

This new discovery couples Martin’s C.1 reverse with a previously unlisted obverse. The new obverse (which Martin has given the designation 4.105) most closely resembles obverses 4.1, 4.71, 4.81, and 4.87, however the positioning of the lettering and stops in the legend in relation to key areas of the bust of George I clearly differentiate this new die.

The coin in question is graded Extremely Fine-40 by Stack’s and will be offered in the upcoming January 13-14, 2009 Americana Public Auction Sale. This marvelous auction will contain a number of highly important consignments including The Brian Danforth Collection of Rosa Americana, Wood’s Hibernia, Saint Patrick, and other Colonial Coinages, The John W. Adams Collection of Medallic Distinctions Awarded to North American First Peoples, U.S. Medals from the Western Reserve Historical Society, Selections from the Estate of Michael K. Ringo, A Comprehensive Collection of Connecticut Coppers from a Northeastern Collector, The Don Dorward Collection of U.S. Coins, and The Brejente Collection of U.S. Medals, and The White Oak Collection, to mention only a selection of the top consignors. Also included in this marvelous sale are offerings of early glassware and silver, an important collection of Feuchtwanger’s Hard Times Era Tokens, over 500 lots of additional medals and tokens, as well as many other wonderful consignments of U.S. federal and colonial coinage.

It is also interesting to note that although the consignor of this esteemed coin has been a customer of Stack’s for decades and had a keen affinity for early U.S. federal and colonial coinage (particularly Draped Bust and Flowing Hair Silver Dollars including a 1794 Silver Dollar offered in an earlier Stack’s auction), the Wood’s piece in question is the only such coin of that series contained in his collection.

Any parties interested in acquiring additional information about either the possibility of consigning to a future Stack’s auction, or the content of Stack’s upcoming auction schedule (including this new discovery) are welcome to contact the firm by telephone at 800-566-2580, email us, or fax at 212-245-5018. The Stack’s website is also an excellent source of information regarding all aspects of the auction firm.

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