Penny-farthing

Quote from WIKI
Although the name "penny-farthing" is now the most common, it was probably not used until the machines were nearly outdated; the first recorded print reference is from 1891 in Bicycling News. It comes from the British penny and farthing coins, one much larger than the other, so that the side view resembles a penny leading a farthing. For most of their reign, they were simply known as "bicycles".

The idea of a Penny-Farthing came from a design interestingly similar to a bicycle today called a "bone shaker".