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Anglo-Saxon newps from NYINC 2014 (partial)
EVillageProwler
Posts: 5,856 ✭✭✭✭✭
We all know this expression: where one door closes, another one opens. Or, in my case, three doors open that turned out together to be roughly equivalent to the closed door...
Thursday morning I get to the show for Early Bird, and I hurried to CNG/Nomos to buy a Harold I penny (S-1163, good EF). The darn penny was sold (Internet) by the time I got there. Bad luck for me.
Here is my missed opportunity:
Lot 123
965158. SOLD $4950
ANGLO-SAXON, Kings of All England. Harold I Harefoot. 1035-1040. Penny (Silver, 17mm, 1.05 g 6), jewel cross type (BMC i, Hild. A), Serebyrig (Salisbury); moneyer Godwine, 1036-1038. + HΛRO••L•D REX Diademed bust to left. Rev. + GODPINE ON SER•E: Cross composed of four ovals united at thinner ends by two concentric circles enclosing a pellet. BMC –. Hild. 846 = SCBI 40 (Stockholm), 515 (same obverse die). North 802. SCBC 1163. Very rare mint for type. Toned. Good extremely fine.
I was in shock, followed by disbelief, followed by dejection.
What transpired next was truly very nice to the point of being funny. The folks at CNG/Nomos, instead of shrugging off my obvious extreme disappointment and moving onto other matters, tried very hard to make me feel better by chatting me up about stuff. Then one of their British specialists (from the London office) came over and took me in hand. Obviously he was trying to build a relationship with a customer -- never a bad thing. He also talked to me about the various nice pennies known to be available in the auctions and at the various dealers, and gave me his sincere and constructive feedback on all of them. I had wanted to take a good look at two nicer near EF non-portrait Wessex pennies in CNG's inventory for some time. I also wanted to look at the two sceattas in the 2014 Nomos FPL.
I explained to this guy what kind of set I was trying to build: essentially, centered around quality.
He advised against the two sceattas in the FPL. But, he really did like these two (which I bought):
ANGLO-SAXON, Kings of Wessex. Edward the Elder. 899-924. AR Penny (23mm, 1.60 g, 2h). Circumscription cross/Horizontal-Trefoil 1 (HT1) type (BMC ii). Uncertain mint; Maginhard, moneyer. + EADVVEARD RE · X, small cross pattée / MEGENARD MO in two lines, + + + between, trefoils above and below. CTCE –; SCBI –; BMC; North 649; SCBC 1087. Near EF, toned. Extremely rare – an unlisted moneyer for this issue.
The moneyer Maginhard is only known for one type (HQ 1) for Edward, struck circa 915-920, at an uncertain mint in Southeast Mercia (Bedford or Northhampton?) and at a Northeastern mint, spelled as MAGNARD. The letter forms on the present piece bear some resemblance to the Southeast Mercia issue, but with with different bars on the A’s and M’s.
[EVP's comments: I initially balked at buying this Edward penny because of the peck marks, but it turns out that the marks are strikethroughs (or whatever the proper term is) from the heavy strike on the other side. In hand, the coin is eventually toned. The toning pattern in the image is due to hot and cold spots from a flan that is not perfectly flat.]
ANGLO-SAXON, Kings of Wessex. Eadmund. 939-946. AR Penny (21mm, 1.18 g, 2h). Small cross/Horizontal-Pellet 1 (HP1) type (BMC i). Uncertain mint; Hunsige, moneyer. + EADMVND REX, small cross pattée / HVNSIGE MO in two lines, + + + between, pellet above and below. CTCE 121; SCBI 34 (BM), 354; North 688; SCBC 1105. Near EF, toned. Good metal.
[EVP's comment: the "spittle" mark on the obverse is MUCH LESS visible in hand than the image suggests.]
Both of these simply-designed pennies are gorgeous. GORGEOUS!!!
What about the 3rd "door"?
Remember the two sceattas that the CNG person advised me not to buy? Well, he ran into me at the show Thursday later in the afternoon to tell me that he has something for me to look at. It is another S-802A, but much better than the one in the Nomos FPL (Lot 121 from Nomos 2014 FPL)
I have no image from my coin because it was a fresh deal. But, mine is a much nicer coin (more expensive too): much nicer (rounder) planchet and much sharper and well-centered strike.
ANGLO-SAXON, Secondary Sceattas. Circa 710-725. Sceat (Silver, 1.29 g), series J, type 37, Northumbria. probably Eoforwic (York). Two confronted diademed heads; between, long cross with trident end; double border / Cross, at each end a bird right; double border. Abramson 18.30. Metcalf 298-9. North 135. SCBC 802A. Lightly toned with some underlying luster. Extremely fine, well centered and struck.
Ex James T. Joyner Collection
Here is the image for the FPL coin, which is the same design as mine (as far as I can tell) but yet has differences in the attribution:
(actually, I see one difference in the coin design: on mine, it has double diadems)
Hope you enjoy these bourse floor purchases. More to come, in other threads perhaps...
EVP
Thursday morning I get to the show for Early Bird, and I hurried to CNG/Nomos to buy a Harold I penny (S-1163, good EF). The darn penny was sold (Internet) by the time I got there. Bad luck for me.
Here is my missed opportunity:
Lot 123
965158. SOLD $4950
ANGLO-SAXON, Kings of All England. Harold I Harefoot. 1035-1040. Penny (Silver, 17mm, 1.05 g 6), jewel cross type (BMC i, Hild. A), Serebyrig (Salisbury); moneyer Godwine, 1036-1038. + HΛRO••L•D REX Diademed bust to left. Rev. + GODPINE ON SER•E: Cross composed of four ovals united at thinner ends by two concentric circles enclosing a pellet. BMC –. Hild. 846 = SCBI 40 (Stockholm), 515 (same obverse die). North 802. SCBC 1163. Very rare mint for type. Toned. Good extremely fine.
I was in shock, followed by disbelief, followed by dejection.
What transpired next was truly very nice to the point of being funny. The folks at CNG/Nomos, instead of shrugging off my obvious extreme disappointment and moving onto other matters, tried very hard to make me feel better by chatting me up about stuff. Then one of their British specialists (from the London office) came over and took me in hand. Obviously he was trying to build a relationship with a customer -- never a bad thing. He also talked to me about the various nice pennies known to be available in the auctions and at the various dealers, and gave me his sincere and constructive feedback on all of them. I had wanted to take a good look at two nicer near EF non-portrait Wessex pennies in CNG's inventory for some time. I also wanted to look at the two sceattas in the 2014 Nomos FPL.
I explained to this guy what kind of set I was trying to build: essentially, centered around quality.
He advised against the two sceattas in the FPL. But, he really did like these two (which I bought):
ANGLO-SAXON, Kings of Wessex. Edward the Elder. 899-924. AR Penny (23mm, 1.60 g, 2h). Circumscription cross/Horizontal-Trefoil 1 (HT1) type (BMC ii). Uncertain mint; Maginhard, moneyer. + EADVVEARD RE · X, small cross pattée / MEGENARD MO in two lines, + + + between, trefoils above and below. CTCE –; SCBI –; BMC; North 649; SCBC 1087. Near EF, toned. Extremely rare – an unlisted moneyer for this issue.
The moneyer Maginhard is only known for one type (HQ 1) for Edward, struck circa 915-920, at an uncertain mint in Southeast Mercia (Bedford or Northhampton?) and at a Northeastern mint, spelled as MAGNARD. The letter forms on the present piece bear some resemblance to the Southeast Mercia issue, but with with different bars on the A’s and M’s.
[EVP's comments: I initially balked at buying this Edward penny because of the peck marks, but it turns out that the marks are strikethroughs (or whatever the proper term is) from the heavy strike on the other side. In hand, the coin is eventually toned. The toning pattern in the image is due to hot and cold spots from a flan that is not perfectly flat.]
ANGLO-SAXON, Kings of Wessex. Eadmund. 939-946. AR Penny (21mm, 1.18 g, 2h). Small cross/Horizontal-Pellet 1 (HP1) type (BMC i). Uncertain mint; Hunsige, moneyer. + EADMVND REX, small cross pattée / HVNSIGE MO in two lines, + + + between, pellet above and below. CTCE 121; SCBI 34 (BM), 354; North 688; SCBC 1105. Near EF, toned. Good metal.
[EVP's comment: the "spittle" mark on the obverse is MUCH LESS visible in hand than the image suggests.]
Both of these simply-designed pennies are gorgeous. GORGEOUS!!!
What about the 3rd "door"?
Remember the two sceattas that the CNG person advised me not to buy? Well, he ran into me at the show Thursday later in the afternoon to tell me that he has something for me to look at. It is another S-802A, but much better than the one in the Nomos FPL (Lot 121 from Nomos 2014 FPL)
I have no image from my coin because it was a fresh deal. But, mine is a much nicer coin (more expensive too): much nicer (rounder) planchet and much sharper and well-centered strike.
ANGLO-SAXON, Secondary Sceattas. Circa 710-725. Sceat (Silver, 1.29 g), series J, type 37, Northumbria. probably Eoforwic (York). Two confronted diademed heads; between, long cross with trident end; double border / Cross, at each end a bird right; double border. Abramson 18.30. Metcalf 298-9. North 135. SCBC 802A. Lightly toned with some underlying luster. Extremely fine, well centered and struck.
Ex James T. Joyner Collection
Here is the image for the FPL coin, which is the same design as mine (as far as I can tell) but yet has differences in the attribution:
(actually, I see one difference in the coin design: on mine, it has double diadems)
Hope you enjoy these bourse floor purchases. More to come, in other threads perhaps...
EVP
How does one get a hater to stop hating?
I can be reached at evillageprowler@gmail.com
0
Comments
<< <i>Beautiful coins, like the Harold I especially. >>
Sure, like the one that I didn't get.
How does one get a hater to stop hating?
I can be reached at evillageprowler@gmail.com
World Collection
British Collection
German States Collection
This is a coin of Aethelwulf I picked up not long ago. Slightly chipped, but has full legend. I could not afford a problem-free VF example now.
The monogram "Saxoniorum" appeared first on the coins of his father Ecgberht, and presumably this was Aethelwulf's first issue. The moneyer, Osmund, also struck coins for Aethelwulf's father, and is, I believe, the only moneyer to strike coins for both kings. The coin was believed to be struck in Canterbury. A second type, with the reverse showing "Saxoniorum occidentalium" may have been struck at Rochester.
Aethelwulf is not remembered as a great military leader, though he had some victories against the Vikings and Welsh. He is remembered as mostly being very pious. In medieval chronicles, being religious is usually a facade for being a lousy king, but in Aethelwuf's case, he probably was that religious. He has five sons. Aethelwulf's youngest son, who was never expected to rule due to having four older brothers, found himself on the throne in 871 due to the premature deaths of all four of his older brothers. This son, Alfred, would become the greatest of all Anglo-Saxon rulers (and the only one to carry the moniker 'the great')
EVP
How does one get a hater to stop hating?
I can be reached at evillageprowler@gmail.com
<< <i>I dig the ANGLO-SAXON, Kings of Wessex. Eadmund. 939-946 sparse design. Cool additions >>
Thanks, but did you take the wrong turn getting onto I-95? Went north when you meant to go south?
Wanna learn more about these? Baltimore is approaching...
EVP
How does one get a hater to stop hating?
I can be reached at evillageprowler@gmail.com
EVP we're all dying to hear what you thought of the season premiere of Downton Abbey.
<< <i>Hey be nice to the new guy.
EVP we're all dying to hear what you thought of the season premiere of Downton Abbey.
I've been very nice to the new guy, and to be fair he's been very nice to me too. That personal tour of where he works was simply amazing. I've always wanted to be inside that building. My brother is the true military history aficionado in the family (I'm just the generalist), so he'd have loved it even more.
I wonder if I can convince Crypto79 to do another personal tour one day with my brother (he's ex NJ Guard and Reserve, Army)???
As for that TV show, everyone seems surprised when I say that I've never watched it. Really.
EVP
How does one get a hater to stop hating?
I can be reached at evillageprowler@gmail.com
Skip ahead to ~36:55 for the lead-in to some coins found at Bamburgh Castle.
<< <i>[ L=Thought of EVP whilst watching this bit on youtube......]
Skip ahead to ~36:55 for the lead-in to some coins found at Bamburgh Castle. >>
You have a problem with your link. I tried to predict the correct URL, but still got an internal YouTube error.
How does one get a hater to stop hating?
I can be reached at evillageprowler@gmail.com
EVP
How does one get a hater to stop hating?
I can be reached at evillageprowler@gmail.com
<< <i>LINK >>
Thanks for fixing my goof, Zohar.
<< <i>Pretty cool finding Eanred stycas. That's a pretty good explanation of why the Northumbrians used copper instead of silver or gold for coins. Thanks!
EVP >>
I'm not sure I agree with the archaeologists' assessment.
First, the coin in the video does not appear to be a regular issue of Eanred. It is not of good style, and likely is an irregular "blundered" styca of the civil war period ~850. This was not a period of stability, but rather one of instability, and the poor style of the coin is an indicator of this.
On the research team's blog, Bamburgh Research Project, in the section on coins, they show two stycas. One is too dirty to identify, the other (scroll to the bottom) is a styca of Aethelred II with moneyer Eardwulf. Eardwulf was one of Aethelred's most prolific moneyers, and his "star center" design is one of the more popular ones to collect.
This is my example of that coin:
For this hoard that was discovered to contain coins of Eanred, Eanred's successor Aethelred II, and irregular coins from the subsequent decade, the castle most likely is not the site of the mint, but rather, the coins were buried for safe keeping during the Great Heathen Army invasion in the late 9th century (like most of the styca hoard finds). The irregular style stycas were probably not officially issued coins by the king's coiners.
The beginning footage immediately introduced the castle owners as the Bernician royals, and for a time the so-called Heptarchy did include a Kingdom of Bernicia. Wonder why it lost its name when it got merged with the rest of what became the Kingdom of Northumbria?
I'm not a big fan of Northumbria coinage because I'm really a silver fan. I have a single styca, gVF, and common type. I'm really into the Wessex line, and onwards.
EVP
How does one get a hater to stop hating?
I can be reached at evillageprowler@gmail.com
<< <i>Nice analysis, Nap. Seems about right, based on my neophyte knowledge. Always nice to meet another person with common interests and more knowledge. I hope to learn much more from you and others here. (Being sincere!)
The beginning footage immediately introduced the castle owners as the Bernician royals, and for a time the so-called Heptarchy did include a Kingdom of Bernicia. Wonder why it lost its name when it got merged with the rest of what became the Kingdom of Northumbria?
I'm not a big fan of Northumbria coinage because I'm really a silver fan. I have a single styca, gVF, and common type. I'm really into the Wessex line, and onwards.
EVP >>
Thank you, but I am hardly an expert, I too am a neophyte, I only started collecting Anglo-Saxon in the last year or two. My interest is in the Northumbrian coins, so I've been trying to learn as much about them as possible. Fortunately there is 200 years of literature out there.
From what I understand about Northumbria, the kingdom was composed of two subkingdom districts, Bernicia and Deira. While they would combine to function as a single entity under a strong king, they did not have true political unity, and would fracture under the weaker monarchs of the mid 9th century. There is a fairy concise history of the kingdom of Northumbria here.
History does not paint our friend Eanred well (he submitted authority to Ecgberht of Wessex), nor his son and successor Aethelred II (not to be confused with the 11th century king of England of the same name). However, Eanred had a remarkably long rule (30+ years) and his coinage includes some very well made silver sceats along with the more common stycas.
A penny depicting Eanred, in the style of the southern kingdoms (Wessex, Mercia, Kent) is known. I believe it is unique and owned by the British Museum. It has been known since the 19th century. It can be seen here. One can only hope that more examples of this coin may be someday found.
How does one get a hater to stop hating?
I can be reached at evillageprowler@gmail.com
<< <i>The Eanred penny is S-861A, and has a catalog value of £2750 in F and £12000 in VF. >>
There are some who do not believe the Eanred penny is a contemporary issue from Eanred of Northumbria. They tend to date it later, to about 850, based on archaeologic/stylistic evidence, which is a good decade after Eanred's death. The solution would be either it is a posthumous issue, or the contemporary researchers are wrong, or the chronology of the king's reign is off. Or the coin is a modern-ish fantasy piece. Any or all of those are certainly possible.
Regardless, I'd still like to own one
I will patiently wait for the post or website that shows off the complete EVP medieval coin collection.
My World Coin Type Set