Pronounced haypennies. Or maybe more like, hayp-knees. When I was young, you could go and but one sweet for a halpenny. A tiny little copper coin.
In Dublin we have the Halpenny Bridge, you can work out why... in recent times, couples who are moving in together have padlocked a lock to the bridge as a symbol of good luck for their relationship. Dublin Council officials have recently come and cut them off as they're worried they will somehow damage the bridge. Sigh. Romantic Ireland's dead and gone!
I don't remember thruppence, but I do remember tuppence...
Why all this coin nostalgia? Well, I recently corrected a test by someone named Thomas Halpenny. Which sounded musically like 'tuppence halpenny' - an amount which is just before my time, we never talked about that either, but still, it was in lots of stories. And is a little poem all to itself. Thomas Halpenny is a sweet name.
I liked Irish money. I loved the big round silver one pound coins when they came in, they were like fairtale money, pieces of silver.
Euros are alright, but they're not so magic. Well, ok, I like the chunkiness of the euro and the double-colour of the €2 coin, I'll confess - that always seemed exotic before we had coins like that.
There are no economic comments behind this post, more tactility and nostalgia.
In Dublin we have the Halpenny Bridge, you can work out why... in recent times, couples who are moving in together have padlocked a lock to the bridge as a symbol of good luck for their relationship. Dublin Council officials have recently come and cut them off as they're worried they will somehow damage the bridge. Sigh. Romantic Ireland's dead and gone!
I don't remember thruppence, but I do remember tuppence...
I liked Irish money. I loved the big round silver one pound coins when they came in, they were like fairtale money, pieces of silver.
Euros are alright, but they're not so magic. Well, ok, I like the chunkiness of the euro and the double-colour of the €2 coin, I'll confess - that always seemed exotic before we had coins like that.
There are no economic comments behind this post, more tactility and nostalgia.
3 comments:
I love the peso bills of Mexico. They have artwork on them. They are beautiful.
I remember when the twenty pence pieces were introduced (in 1988?). What a sense of wonder what they'd be like.
The big and the small 5 pences, the heavy fifty pence piece. Loved them.
The Dutch Guilder notes were something spectacular.
Oh and yes, I do remember half pennies.
Used to go up to Fordes shop for milk, which was still being priced in half pennies.
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