Valuations of Limerick Soviet notes

[Mac]

Approximate conservative general valuations in Euro for Limerick Soviet Notes, based on recent auction results are as follows:
1 shilling, 5 shilling, 10 shilling notes.
Poor: 900
VG: 1,200
Fine: 1,400
VF: 2,000
EF: 3,000

These have been doing very well in recent auctions, and it is difficult to put an accurate value on them. One thing is clear, though, there is no differential in value between the three denominations.

Last Edit: 02.11.23

[Mac]

Some recent sales results.
09.05.15. €1744 including fees in auction (Whytes) for a VG to Fine grade Limerick Soviet 10 Shilling note.

[Mac]

December 2012,
Limerick Soviet 5 Shillings, number 148, in Vg grade fetched 1,400 Euro.

This auction was slightly controversial, as the Limerick Council of Trade Unions sought to acquire the note for their archives. They were in fact the successful bidders.
Limerick Leader newspaper report on the auction.

[Mac]

23 Apr 2016. Important Centenary Sale Auction from Fonsie Mealy Auctioneers, Lot 371.
1/-, 5/-, 10/- together in a single lot with a Local Pass. The catalogue description follows, taken from ww w.the-saleroom.com/en-gb/auction-catalogues/fonsie-mealy-auctioneers/catalogue-id-srfons10017/lot-0dff764d-c082-4b6b-a106-a5e100bae168

The estimate on the lot was 5,000–7,000 Euro. I could easily see it fetching the lower estimate.

"The Limerick Soviet" Bank Notes Rare Complete Set Limerick: The Workers of Limerick - General Strike against British Militarism, (April 15 - 27). The complete set of Strike Notes: One Shilling 1/- blue and black ink on cream paper, Five Shilling 5/-, green and black ink on green paper, and Ten Shilling, 10/-, black and red ink on green paper. All notes are signed by George Cronin, Chairman & James Casey, Treasurer, in ink and the 5/- & 10/- notes are signed on reverse by Thomas Johnson, Labour Leader. All are struck with oval stamp of Mechanics Institute, Limerick. Together with an original "Defence of the Realm - Local Pass," for the Special Military Area of Limerick, signed stamped and dated 25th April, during the Siege. All in fine condition. Rare Survivors. * The Limerick Soviet was a self-declared administration, named after the committees set up in the Russian Revolution of 1917, that existed from 15 to 27 April 1919. At the beginning of the Irish War of Independence, a general strike was organised by the Limerick Trades and Labour Council, as a protest against the British army's declaration of a "Special Military Area" under the Defence of the Realm Act, which covered Limerick city and all parts of Limerick and Clare counties. A special Strike Committee was set up to print money, control food prices and publish newspapers. The businesses of the city accepted the Soviet's currency, but outside Limerick and to a lesser degree Dublin, there was little sympathy and some large unions, such as the National Union of Railwaymen, did not give support. After two weeks the Sinn Fein Lord Mayor of Limerick Alphonsus O'Mara, and the Catholic Bishop Denis Hallinan called for the strike to end, and the Strike Committee issued a proclamation on 27 April 1919 stating that the strike was over. A cornerstone for any Irish banknote collector, this is the first currency issued by an independent revolutionary movement in Ireland.

[Mac]

A low grade Limerick Soviet 10 Shilling note sold on ebay a few days ago for USD $686.
The note was previously recorded in the census, as being sold in Dublin by Adams in 1999 for IEP £340.
I will post a pic shortly.

[DOC]

That is a reasonable price in the circumstances. I suspect that a higher price would have been achieved if the US based seller posted to Ireland.

[ThePloughman]

This is the ebay note. I didnt bid on it. I figure on spending more on a better grade example.
Next year is 100th anniversary, so maybe some more examples will be offered for sale then. Prices might fall!

limerick-soviet-10.jpg (33.77 KiB) Viewed 19171 times

[Mac]

A Limerick soviet 1 Shilling note sold for 1,800 Euro plus fees at Mullen's, Bray auctions today.

[DOC]

A strong price there for this intriguing note issue.

[Mac]

Here is a picture of the note - it is quite a presentable example.
The fees are around 30%, so that makes the total purchase cost approximately 2,300 Euro.

[Mac]

Many collectors who go for these want an example of each denomination, which serves to keep the market healthy!

[ThePloughman]

That is a nice example. Are there more of these being offered now than 10 or 20 years ago? Seems to be.

[Mac]

Are there more of these being offered now than 10 or 20 years ago? Seems to be.

There have been several up for sale in the past few years, certainly more than a decade ago. Overall, it seems to me that there is a steady trickle of the notes being offered for sale. There certainly appears to be no shortage of collectors chasing them, going by the solid prices being realised!

[ThePloughman]

I missed my chance to get one kinda cheap on ebay some years ago. Still lookin, and waiting!

[LimerickNomad]

We all missed our chance!

[Mac]

There are three Limerick soviet notes on offer in the Noonans May 31 & June 1 auction, one of each denomination. The auction preview is currently building on Noonans website.

All three notes have been recorded previously, and are in decent condition. They should be a good test of the international market value of the notes.

Pics to follow.

[callahiljo]

In PMI we put a value of "from £1500 VF" against all three denominations. Noonans seem confident they will go for more. A good test indeed. I am yet another collector to have missed the chance to obtain one of these notes when they were "cheaper" (they were never that cheap!).

[LimerickNomad]

Folks,

Another kicker is whether these notes get media traction, either locally or nationally, which could bring wealthy non-collectors into the marketplace, to completely destroy whatever prior market valuations were put on these three wonderful notes.

I am also interested in these notes but know that my budget will not be nearly sufficient if these wildcards get to know about them before auction day.

LN.

[Mac]

There were three notes sold in in Stacks Bowers in January 2022, which went for the normal price level. This would suggest a sensible level for the market.

[Mac]

Interestingly, Limerick Soviet Notes always sell when properly reserved!

The result from the Noonans auction of May 31 & June 1 was quite robust:
Lot 278 1 Shilling, £4,000; Lot 279, 5 Shillings, £4,000; Lot 280, 10 Shillings, £2,800. All plus fees!

This suggests strongly for a price differential between the 10 Shilling and the 1 Shilling and 5 Shilling notes, which is not unreasonable considering that he 10 shilling note is the most common.
The 10 Shilling was a lower grade than the other two, which would also have had an effect on the prices realised.