Irish Silver Nickle Coin 3d Hare 1967

A gorgeous uncirculated "thrupenny bit".  See enlarge image.

 It was said of a good Irish dancer:

"She was so light on her feet that she could swing on a trupenny bit and not step on the hare's ear"

Made from a cupro-nickel alloy  (75% CU 25%NI).

The next mint was the decimal set in 1971.

Irish Three Penny Piece

The reverse legend 'Leath Reul' (the dot - or builte - above the final 't' is representd by a "h" in modern Irish) is the Irish for half a real - the Spanish Real denonimation was widely used in Europe and America between about 1500 and 1820. A 1 real piece corresponded to the value of sixpence and as the Spanish coins circulated widely in Ireland, the Irish language adopted the word 'real' for a sixpence. It is interesting to note that the same Spanish real was called a 'bit' in the US and the 8 real coin was the forerunner for the US dollar - A 'bit' in modern US terms is 12 1/2 cents and is never used, but the expression 'two bits' for a quarter dollar is still in use.

 Irish Brown Hare

The Irish hare - lagomorpha - is closely related to the Scottish Mountain Hare which differs from the English Brown Hare.  It's summer coat is more russet in colour when compared with the smokey brown of the Scottish species. The hare does not usually extend to the off shore islands of Ireland, although it is found abundantly on the North Bull Island in Dublin Bay. This wonderful animal needs to be protected due to the demands of the coursing lobby.