Throughout history, extraordinary events have impacted on a nation’s currency. Triggering ad hoc measures to supplement a medium of exchange. Affecting mintages or inspiring new designs. The events create an environment that spawns numismatic superstars. The Hannibal Head Holey Dollar is one such numismatic super-star. 

It's called the ‘Hannibal Head' due to an act of political intrigue, the coin is legendary and only two Hannibal Head Holey Dollars are held by private collectors. One example is held in the Sydney Museum.

When a collectible is named or branded, it has a familiarity or connection with collectors that lasts for generations to come. The name endures.

We see it with the world's most famous diamond, the Hope Diamond and the Taylor-Burton diamond. And Australia’s most famous nugget, the Welcome Stranger. The Rolls-Royce Phantom and Cullinan. 

And so it is with Australia's leading Holey Dollars. They also are named. The Pillar Holey Dollar. The Madrid Holey Dollar, for collectors unique. And the Hannibal Head Holey Dollar with two examples available to collectors. 

These four Holey Dollars resonate with collectors, their names ensuring a familiarity for generations to come. Highly prestigious, excruciatingly rare, we are truly honoured to be offering the celebrated Hannibal Head Holey Dollar.

This is an historic offering of an important Holey Dollar, a coin that plays a pivotal role in Australia's Holey Dollar story. 

A coin that has also been the highlight of two exhibitions, at the Macquarie Bank in 2013 and the Royal Australian Mint Canberra in 2019.

Today only two hundred Holey Dollars are held in private hands.

Those surviving examples are classified into types based on the legend and portrait of the Spanish monarch depicted on the original Spanish Silver Dollar.

The monarchs cover the spectrum from Ferdinand VI, Charles III, Charles IV, Joseph Bonaparte and Ferdinand VII.

There are eight distinct types of Holey Dollars, the most readily available type offering collectors a pool of one hundred and eighteen Holey Dollars, each coin depicting the legend and portrait of King Charles IV of Spain.

The Hannibal Head Holey Dollar is one of the rarest types, representing the reign of Joseph Bonaparte, with only two examples available to private collectors. 

The ceding of the Spanish throne to Napoleon Bonaparte's brother, Joseph Bonaparte, became the catalyst for issuing a new silver coinage at the Lima Mint, an event that underpins the numismatic superstar status of the Hannibal Head Holey Dollar.

Napoleon Bonaparte emerged as the strongman of Europe in 1799 leading his armies across Europe deposing monarchs and dominating the entire continent.

At the time Spain was ruled by King Charles IV, an ally of France.

In 1807, Bonaparte’s armies marched through Spain and invaded Portugal. The Spanish monarchy co-operating because it had hoped to secure Southern Portugal for itself.

The alliance between France under Bonaparte and Spain under Charles IV disintegrated the following year when on February 16, 1808, under the pretext of sending reinforcements to the French army occupying Portugal, the French invaded northern Spain.

In March 1808, Napoleon Bonaparte pressured King Charles IV to abdicate the Spanish throne to his son Ferdinand VII. Ferdinand's reign was short and lasted less than two months.

Napoleon Bonaparte duped both Charles IV and Ferdinand VII into ceding the Spanish throne to Bonaparte’s older brother Joseph who assumed rule of the Spanish kingdom on 6 June 1808.

And while the upper echelons of the Spanish Government accepted Ferdinand's abdication and Napoleon's choice of Joseph as King of Spain, the Spanish people did not. Uprisings broke out throughout the country.

The Spanish colonial mint of Lima refused to acknowledge Bonaparte as the Spanish King and embarked upon a numismatic protest.

The mint continued to strike their silver dollars with the legend of the imprisoned Ferdinand VII. The mint also refused to depict Bonaparte's portrait on their coinage, instead using an ‘imaginary’ portrait said to be extremely unflattering! The portrait is universally referred to as the ‘Hannibal Head’ portrait.

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