Anglo-Saxon

Stewart Lyon, when discussing the coinage of ninth century Northumbria in the introduction to the SCBI 68, stated that ‘There are no coins of Eanbald II minted jointly with Eanred’. The appearance of a new coin has served to prove Lyon wrong. This brief note discusses the new joint regal and archiepiscopal issue and its place within early ninth century Northumbrian numismatics. 

The moneyer Ceolbald has long been known as one of the most prolific moneyers in the coinage of Æthelred II of Northumbria’s second reign (c. 790-796), issuing a number of different die varieties. This note discusses a newly recognised sub-type, probably reflecting an error on part of the original die-sinker.

This note offers an up-to-date listing of the moneyers for Edward the Confessor’s  Expanding Cross type, recording which are currently known for the Heavy series of the type, struck to a weight averaging 1.65g, and those known for the Light series of the type, struck to a weight averaging 1.09g, and adding notes to explain the addition of some moneyers to those previously recorded for the type, and the removal of others. The opportunity has also been taken to record the existence of coins of Light series weight which have been struck from Heavy series dies, and other instances where coins are of anomalous weight.  

In this article I bring together some of the distinguishing features of some Crux variants of Æthelred II. Some of these variants are hard to distinguish, so I have created a flow diagram that groups the coins by features that are shared in common. The article focuses on Crux, Early Transitional Crux, Late Transitional Crux, Small Crux and Intermediate Small Cross-Crux mules. This guide should aid people in identifying some of these coins. The descriptions of each coin type is not exhaustive, and variations will likely crop up that don’t always fit into these neat categories, but the key distinguishing features have been listed.

The author attempts to weave a single thread through the more exotic species of the complex, heavily interrelated sceatta coinage.

Three artefacts found by metal detection in recent years appear to have design elements in common with the early pennies of Beonna of East Anglia (749 – c.760). These may have had commercial purposes, possibly as weights. This article by Tony Abramson explores the possibilities.

In late 2020, a find of an early Northumbria penny from Hayton, East Yorkshire, cast new light on the chronology of the northern royal silver coinage. The coin has a die link with an extremely rare type associated with the patrician king Aethelwald Moll, yet bears the named-moneyer reverse attributed to his son’s second reign three decades later. In this article, Tony Abramson suggests how this find may fit into the sequence.

Instances of pennies in the late Anglo-Saxon period with altered mint signatures are exceedingly rare. This note discusses a Radiate Small Cross type penny of Edward the Confessor of Watchet that was struck from a reverse die showing clear signs of alteration to the mint name. The author argues that the die had first been cut for use at Bedwyn and then altered for use at Watchet. Stewart Lyon was asked to comment on the paper and has kindly supplied an alternative reading.

A discussion of the evidence for an intriguing early nineteenth century coin hoard from Laxfield, Suffolk, which may or not have had both a Carolingian denier component as well as an Anglo-Saxon element. The note also draws attention to the fact that the late Tony Merson possessed a parcel of Carolingian deniers which he believed to derive from the hoard in question.