George II Hibernia Half Penny oddity

Hi, I was just looking through some of my coins to see which ones I could add to the "How far can we go back" thread, when I spotted this half penny which seems different to what the books show. It, being a 1741 coin, should have the large lettering. But by comparing it with the picture in my Coins of Scotland Ireland and the Islands book, it appears to have the small lettering that appeared on the 1736-38 coins.
Any ideas? Could it be a contemporary copy ?
The picture isn't the greatest, and I know the coin has been badly cleaned and scratched in the past but it is unusual.

possibly a fake my friend looking at my book, as the txt looks totally irregular especially looking the II as these should be the same size and distance from the rim. here's the image from my book

Looks to be a contemporary counterfeit it was rife back then.. until  a law was passed allowing counterfeiters to be hung as punishment it was just a misdemeanour usually resulting in a couple of years in jail or being sent to Oz ! (lucky them)

100% a contemporary copy. Nice coin!

Thanks guys.

Hi,



This coin is an Irish halfpenny of George II, struck in 1741 at the Royal Mint in London for export to Ireland.
This coin is typical of the type issued in 1741, 1742, 1743, 1744 and 1746. It has larger lettering than the 1736-1738 type and the 'U' in GEORGIUS (as opposed to a 'V') distinguishes it from the 1747-1753 type.