St. James's Auctions
Auction 26 5 March 2014
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Charles I, Pontefract besieged, two shillings, 1648, lozenge-shaped, crown above C R with central dot, Latin legend surrounding, rev. castle gate and turrets between OBS and sword, P C above, date immediately below gate, each side encircled by a border of connected beads, wt. 9.85gms. (S.3147; N.2645 [extremely rare]), fully original flan of sound metal showing patchy toning, unusual sharpness of detail throughout, good very fine, exceedingly rare
£25,000-35,000
*ex Devonshire, 1844 (lot 467)
ex Bergne, 1873 (lot 788)
ex Addington, 1886, purchased by Montagu, 1893
ex Montagu part 3, 1896 (lot 642)
ex Moon, 1901 (lot 237)
ex Murdoch, 1903 (lot 347)
ex St James's Auction 2, May 2005 (lot 137)
The siege of the ancient castle at Pontefract in West Yorkshire was an endurance test for the defending royalists, lasting from June 1648 through the end of March 1649, two months after King Charles was captured, tried, and executed on 30 January. The castle was held with the hope that an army being raised in Scotland by the Duke of Hamilton would arrive in time to scatter the attackers but his army was defeated before reaching Pontefract. While Cromwell's generals Rainsborough and Lambert kept their forces before the walls, attempting to allow no passage in or out, the defenders issued emergency monies for the purchase of necessities. These were almost entirely shillings fashioned from hand-cut dies and struck on pieces of silver taken from plate. Pieces struck during King Charles's life offered an image of the castle as seen here with the initials OBS for 'besieged' placed sideways along the left turret, while the legend of the other side, DVM SPIRO SPERO, translates from Latin to mean 'Whilst I live, I hope' which seems more of a plea than a stance in wartime, and in fact Pontrefract's defence was Charles's last hope for victory. So resented was the castle's resistance that the victors ordered it torn down within weeks of its fall. Of the coins made during this siege, relatively few shillings and apparently only a few two-shillings coins have survived. This is one of the most historic of all English coins.
£25,000-35,000
*ex Devonshire, 1844 (lot 467)
ex Bergne, 1873 (lot 788)
ex Addington, 1886, purchased by Montagu, 1893
ex Montagu part 3, 1896 (lot 642)
ex Moon, 1901 (lot 237)
ex Murdoch, 1903 (lot 347)
ex St James's Auction 2, May 2005 (lot 137)
The siege of the ancient castle at Pontefract in West Yorkshire was an endurance test for the defending royalists, lasting from June 1648 through the end of March 1649, two months after King Charles was captured, tried, and executed on 30 January. The castle was held with the hope that an army being raised in Scotland by the Duke of Hamilton would arrive in time to scatter the attackers but his army was defeated before reaching Pontefract. While Cromwell's generals Rainsborough and Lambert kept their forces before the walls, attempting to allow no passage in or out, the defenders issued emergency monies for the purchase of necessities. These were almost entirely shillings fashioned from hand-cut dies and struck on pieces of silver taken from plate. Pieces struck during King Charles's life offered an image of the castle as seen here with the initials OBS for 'besieged' placed sideways along the left turret, while the legend of the other side, DVM SPIRO SPERO, translates from Latin to mean 'Whilst I live, I hope' which seems more of a plea than a stance in wartime, and in fact Pontrefract's defence was Charles's last hope for victory. So resented was the castle's resistance that the victors ordered it torn down within weeks of its fall. Of the coins made during this siege, relatively few shillings and apparently only a few two-shillings coins have survived. This is one of the most historic of all English coins.