PREVIEW: THE ROY INCE COLLECTION OF BRITISH COINS 3 OCTOBER

The late Roy Ince (1942-2023) caught the collecting bug early, starting with brass threepenny coins before the age of ten. He was intrigued by why some dates were hard to find, and his curiosity grew when friends gave him some older silver threepenny coins.

Occasionally returning home from his travels abroad as a surveyor, Roy’s older brother would bring him foreign coins too. And it was when he exchanged some of these for what he thought was a 1799 George III Penny – it was a Halfpenny – that he turned his attention to older English coins.

 

This was an interest that was to last the rest of his life and, as the catalogue for this sale attests, Roy’s dedication enabled him to gather a formidable collection from numerous reigns, starting with
Edward the Confessor (1042-66) and charting a path through history, including the Commonwealth, up to the late Queen Elizabeth II.

Highlights abound in this sale, but arguably one of the most interesting coins is the 1648 Pontefract Shilling, struck during the short period of the Civil War between June 1648 and March 1649 when the castle served as the base for a Royalist revival.

“Pontefract Castle was taken for the king at the beginning of June 1648, in the hope that it would act as a base for a royalist revival with the aid of an army that was being raised in Scotland at that time by the Duke of Hamilton,” explains Tim Wilkes, Head of Coins at Noonans.

“On his way south, the Duke relieved Carlisle and joined forces with Sir Marmaduke Langdale. Shortly after, however, his army was defeated at Preston, and based on the events in the north, any revival began to look increasingly unlikely. The fall of Colchester to the Roundheads only exacerbated the situation.

“Despite this gloomy outlook, Pontefract Castle held out throughout the autumn and winter of 1648-9, resisting the best efforts of Cromwellian generals Rainsborough and Lambert who had taken Colchester earlier in the summer. The castle finally fell at the end of March 1649. Despite being one of the largest in England, it was then systematically demolished within a matter of weeks.”

The Shilling offered here is of type I, with thicker lettering, a large C R under the crown on the obverse surrounded by the legend DUM SPIRO SPERO (While I breathe, I hope). The reverse depicts the castle gateway with sword to the right. In good to fine condition, this rarity is estimated at £2,000-2,600.