Ancient Gold (and occasional silver!) Coins
-------->Remember, postage is included<--------
Scottish & English Hammered and Milled Gold Coins:
Please note that Lay-Away is no
longer available on any gold coinage unless by
prior arrangement.
WAu-7993: Extremely Rare Celtic
Gold Full Stater. Gallic War
issue - Ambiani - imported from Gaul
or specifically, the modern day Rouen area of France, circa 60-50 BC.
A seemingly common enough Ambiani stater from the Gallic War period with
the disjoined or sinuous horse, right, and a blank obverse. However, the double "S" below the
horse and either side of the pellet render this coin excessively rare. Ancient British Coins (ABC) by Chris Rudd, the
go-to reference for Celtic coins since 2010, taking over from Van Arsdell, has
no recorded examples. Ambiani is ABC 16,
with nothing either side of the pellet.
He lists an Atrebates stater (ABC 19) as having a single S below the
horse but the coin for sale here is NOT Atrebates (the Atrebates were separated
from the Ambiani by the Canche river) as they have a letter A on the
obverse. Spink lump the Gallic War
issues together and put forward Spink 13 - a stater with a single S on the
reverse, but this turns out to be Atrebates and references back to ABC 19 - but
again, even if this was the correct attribution, and it isn't, it's just a
single S whereas this coin has a double reversed S. Interestingly, the double reverse
"SS" symbols appear on slightly later staters and quarter staters
from the North Thames region, ABC 2237 and 2243-49 (these are the only
marks on an otherwise plain reverse, unlike the symbols on this coin) and are
thought to represent lightning flashes rather than letters. So, a very common tribe (although
interestingly, Ambiani staters now seem to be more expensive than Coritani
staters, which certainly wasn't the case a decade ago) but an excessively rare
variant that is to my knowledge unrecorded and / or unpublished. Quite a find! 5.85g (see image here). From an old Northern collection - the
collector does not want to be named on the internet but is willing for me to
disclose his name and town to the buyer for provenance. £1,895
WAu-7994: Celtic Gold Spiral Type
Full Stater. Trinovantes &
Catuvellauni - Addedomaros, circa 50 BC to 1 AD. Originally located north of the Thames
area, central to the east coast. A
spiral wreath of x6 arms extending outwards from three back-to-back crescents
at the centre. The reverse horse is
facing right with a ring pellet either side and a cornucopia below. Spink 210, ABC 2517 - Ancient British Coins
by Chris Rudd, the go-to reference for Celtic coins since 2010, taking over
from Van Arsdell. Not a rare coin but
rare in this grade - it's generally not a well defined issue but this coin is a
strong example with little wear. Toned
and lustrous. Excellent provenance. £975 RESERVED J.K.
Found Wing,
Buckinghamshire
Ex T. Matthews (1999)
Ex Haddenham collection
Ex Spink
WAu-7996: Rare Celtic Gold Broad
Flan Type Quarter Stater. Ambiani
tribe - imported from Gaul or specifically, the modern day Rouen area of France, circa 3rd century BC to the mid 1st century AD. These were the first coins to be used in Britain. Gallo-Belgic
"Broad Flan" type with a rather impressive flamboyantly wreathed head
facing right on the obverse and a somewhat stylised horse on the reverse, again
facing right. Spink 6, ABC 28 (listed
"Rare") - Ancient British Coins (ABC) by Chris Rudd, the go-to
reference for Celtic coins since 2010, taking over from Van Arsdell. From an old collection - the collector does
not want to be named on the internet but is willing for me to disclose his name
and town to the buyer for provenance. See here for old
tickets etc. £670
Ex J.Follws collection
Ex Chris Rudd (sold for
£500 back in the day)
Ex Northern collection
WAu-9017: Celtic Iron Age Full
Gold Stater - Verica. Sole ruler of
the Southern region, 10-40 AD, and
closely allied with Rome, so much so that in AD 42, Verica fled to Rome in
order to seek assistance from Claudius, which would appear somewhat ambitious,
knowing what we now know about Claudius, although with the Claudian invasion of
Britain in AD 43, perhaps not - even Claudius would have recognised the
strategic importance of embedded, compliant "friends" in a land to be
conquered. Obverse: "COMF" on tablet - a tribute to Commios,
Verica being the so-called third son of Commios (the others being
Eppillus & Tincommius); rev:
Horseman, right, holding spear, REX below, VIR behind the galloping
horseman. Rex is Latin for king (another
nod to Rome) but Verica literally
meant "the high one", as in Your Highness. In fairness, Verica was very successful, much
more than his brothers, at least up until AD 40!! Spink 120, ABC 1190, Van Arsdell 500-1, BMC
1146-58. See here for weight and
tickets. An interesting question -
is the horseman actually a horsewoman? A
very nice, popular Celtic full gold stater.
£2,325
WAu-9018: Celtic Iron Age Full
Gold Stater - Tasciovanus. Catulvellauni
tribe, 25 BC - AD 10 Hidden faces type with the obverse being Hidden Faces -
crossed wreaths, one curved, back-to-back, crescents at the centre with faces
in the angles. The reverse has a horse
in flight, right, a bucranium and a solar device above. TASCIAVAN is supposed to be above nut it
rarely is. Hook-like devices are found
below the horse but this coin has an extra object below, described as a
"bunch of grapes" on the ticket.
See here for
weight. Again, Tasciovanus appears
to have had ties with Rome as his coinage, especially the later issues, use
increasingly Romanised designs.
Tasciovanus was an excellent king but unusually, his greatness is
perhaps overshadowed by that of his son, Cunobelinus. It is ironic that the hard work,
strengthening and consolidation of the Catulvellauni by Tasciovanus literally
paved the way for Cunobelinus to shine so illustriously. Spink 214, ABC 2553, Van Arsdell 1680, BMC
1591-1603. An outstanding and thus
desirable coin. £2,450
WAu-9019: Roman Gold Aureus - Hadrian
with Sought After She-Wolf, Romulus & Remus Reverse. Struck Rome, AD 124-5. Obverse:
Laureate head right, slight drapery to far shoulder, HADRIANVS AVGVSTVS. Reverse: Capitoline wolf, left, suckling the
twins Romulus & Remus, COS
above, III below in exergue. An
extremely popular, sought-after and quite difficult reverse type to source and
Hadrian is one of the most popular emperors to collect anyway, regardless of
reverses. They come with the wolf left
and wolf right facing. See here for the weight
and here for a
coin-in-the-hand image using a camera phone.
RIC II. 3 709, BMCRE 449, Biaggi 598.
The last one to go through Auction was earlier this year, Spink, with an
£8,500 price after buyer's commission - I was the underbidder, or one bid under
that. There or thereabouts, though. A rare coin and a rare oportunity. £7,450
WRS-8999:
Roman Silver Legionary
Denarius: Legion II - Extraordinary Provenance. Roman Imperatorial coinage, post Second Triumvirate, Mark
Antony. Struck Autumn 32 to Spring 31
BC. RSC 27, Sear 349. Legionary denarii is the modern name for a
series of Roman silver denarius coins issued by Mark Antony in the eastern Med
iterranean
during the last war of the Roman Republic from 32 to 31 BC, in the lead up
to the Battle of Actium. They were
struck for one purpose only - to pay the legionary soldiers. This coin is Legion II - present in the British
invasion force of the imperial propraetor Aulus Plautius in AD43, during which
it was placed under the command of the young legionary legate Titus Flavius
Vespasianus, later to become emperor. Twenty
Three legions were honoured in this "Legionary" denarius issue. The coins were struck in reduced silver
content (!) and so survived the rigours of circulation much better than
standard denarii. This meant that they
continued to be used in circulation and would have been present on the invasion
force of AD 43. The entire legion apart
from a small caretaker force, plus detachments of Legio VI Victrix and Legio XX
Valeria Victrix, was put to work on the construction of Hadrian’s Wall.
Part of the very famous Helmingham Hoard of 2019 - the largest mixed
hoard of British Iron Age and Roman coins ever found in Britain.
This hoard was deposited AD 46-7, only 3 or 4 years after Legion II
landed. Sold with an impressive array of
tickets & literature here and here. The large A4 double-sided glossy document
makes very interesting reading as it attempts to focus in on the individual who
deposited this hoard into the ground. A
very good coin for issue, bearing in mind its nearly 80 years in circulation,
but more than that, true history in a coin!
£435
Provenance:
ex
Helmingham Hoard of 2019
WAu-8089: Early Anglo-Saxon English
Crondall Gold Thrysma or Shilling.
Witman type with obverse bust right, a trident in front. Circa 620-45.
The reverse has a blundered legend surrounding a crude cross with what
is a very different 4th terminal to what we'd normally expect to see on this
type. Sutherland type IV.1, Spink
753. Of excellent gold content - it was
from this point onwards that the metal used for Saxon coinage was increasingly
and progressively "watered down" with silver (the post Crondall and
European types have that insipid gold colour about them) until by circa AD 660's,
they were all entirely silver in metal content.
Recorded on the E.M.C. database (2022-0426). The Crondall (Hampshire) Hoard of 1828 was
the single largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold coins found prior to the 21st
century. It comprised 97 gold coins,
together with three unstruck gold planchets and one gold-plated object that
could have been a coin forgery. Of the
97 coins, 73 were Anglo-Saxon Thrymsa and 24 were Merovingian or Frankish
tremissis. The consensus amongst
historians is that hoard dates from between AD 635 and about AD 650. The coins are now in the collection of the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford. Of the 73 Thrysmas, x4 in the hoard had the
same obverse die as the coin listed here.
All Crondall "Native Anglo-Saxon" type Thrysmas as rare - even
the late "two emperors" type, which is invariably the one to turn up,
is rare as very few gold Saxon coins were minted and hardly any survived - it
would only be through hoards or casual field losses. This is an extremely important and
significant Anglo-Saxon gold coin.
£5,695
WAu-8056:
**Choice**
Saxon Merovingian Gold Tremissis. Wico
in Pontio (Quentovic), c. 620-640. Tremissis (Gold, 13mm, 1.26g, 0h), Moneyer Dutta.
+VVICCO FIT Laureate bust to right. Rev. DVTTA MONET, Cross on three steps. Belfort 4959. NM II p. 55, 14. Prou 1125. Rare but rarer still being centrally struck
and such good grade. Clear and well struck, good very fine or better. The Merovingian Dynasty was based in ancient Gaul (which is now France) and dates from the middle of the
5th century AD. The coins were very much
trading pieces and many have been found in Britain as Saxon trade between the
Continent and Britain was extremely robust. Similar examples have been found as far west
as Cornwall and as far north as Northumbria.
Ex Ian Millington (an expert on Anglo Saxon
coinage), ex Silbury Coins (their ticket), ex DNW. You will not find a better example of this
early Saxon gold coin. It really is a
choice coin. £3,250
WAu-7812:
Edward III
Medieval Hammered Gold Full Noble.
Fourth coinage, post-treaty period of 1369-77, group III. Spink 1521, North 1281, Schneider 115. Calais mint. The town of Calais in what is now Northern France was under English rule
from 1347 until 7 January 1558, being a bit of a
vanity statement for the English monarchs in their claim on the French crown.
It cost almost 1/5th of all the revenue collected in England to maintain Calais as an English
possession. The mint was opened in 1363 as a
direct result of the treaty between France and England and meant the mintage of coinage
for England could be outsourced to Calais to aid in the newly formed
cross-channel trading routes. The
relationship between the two countries has perhaps always been a tad strained -
the mint closed in 1440 after really only producing
limited coinage under Edward III, a tiny amount of gold under Richard II and
Henry IV, a miniscule quantity of farthings under Henry V and some of the
earlier coinage of Henry VI. Rusty
obverse dies – perhaps a result of French sea air?! Ex Malthouse collection; also accompanied by
a much earlier, unidentified ticket.
£5,450
WAu-9021: Edward III Medieval
Hammered Gold Full Noble. Fourth
coinage, pre-treaty period, 1351-61.
Series E with impaired letters on the dies so c.1354-55. Initial mark Cross 2, E at centre of reverse,
Spink 1488, Schneider 23 (the obverse), North 1160. Note the red deposits at 1 o'clock on the reverse.
This is usually the remains of inert red wax where the coin has been
prepared to be copied into a very early iteration of the BMC. With much patience, this coin should be able
to be located with perhaps a more in-depth provenance. See here for old tickets
and here for
weight. About VF thus scarce. £4,995
Provenance
Ex Spink (2010), sold to
Ex Estafefette collection
WAu-9020: Henry IV Hammered Gold
Medieval Half Noble. Light Coinage
of 1412-13 only. This is a single issue,
Spink 1716. A contemporary
imitation. Ex Patrick Finn (1999) where
he describes this as, “Very fine, unrecorded and very interesting since there
are very few known half nobles of Henry IV.”
See here for
the original Patrick Finn write-up with his corresponding photograph here. The weight is here. The official Henry IV half nobles are as rare
as hens' teeth (we're talking the fingers on one hand) but this contemporary
imitation is thought to be unique.
Nothing can be rarer than this!
£2,895
Provenance
Ex Patrick Finn FPL 17, 1999
– Number 6 – £650 “Very fine, unrecorded and very interesting since there are
very few known half nobles of Henry IV.”
WAu-9022: Henry V Medieval
Hammered Gold Full Noble. Series C with
a broken annulet on the side of the ship.
1413-22. Initial mark Cross
Pattée (4), Spink 1742. Easter 1412, the
very tail end of Henry IV, hailed a numismatic New Dawn – due to fiscally
challenging times, gold and silver coinage was officially issued at a reduced
weight. We’re all so jaded with
officialdom today that many might think this was no big deal but although there
had previously been “tinkering” of weights (Edward III nobles down from 138
grains to 120 grains), this was the first official “Light Coinage” episode
where the coin in your hand was not quite worth the amount it represented. A few Henrys on and just over 100 years in
the future, Henry VIII took this concept to a whole new level. Some might even argue that reducing silver
content by half and then ultimately taking silver out of coinage altogether in
the early and mid 20th century was worse still.
However, in 1412 in was the first time and it was momentous. This decision made, it would be an obvious
move, you’d imagine, to increase the output of gold from the mint, thereby
benefiting the exchequer. However, there
is no numismatic evidence suggesting that this actually happened; the main
reason being that bullion was still very thin on the ground. Another reason was the almost complete lack
of skilled staff at every level in the mint due to extreme inactivity during
the preceding years. In September 1412,
the warden at the mint was ordered to recruit moneyers and die-sinkers. This clearly impacted Henry IV coinage but it
also affected early Henry V coinage, especially gold, for the above reasons of
lack of sufficient bullion and a new workforce at the mint who would have
needed a lot of time to get up to speed.
See here
for weight. This gold noble is a superb
example of this rarer monarch, being at least as good as both nobles Spink put
up as plate coins, with all the vast resources at their fingertips. £6,450
WAu-7555:
Edward IV
Hammered Medieval Gold Ryal or Rose Noble.
Light Coinage of 1464 – 1470 only, London mint, small fleurs in spandrels,
initial mark Crown, Spink 1951. This
coin, issued in 1465, whilst unambiguously attractive in design, was a bit of a
disaster. It superseded the old Noble
because this was now considered a clunky and old fashioned denomination at 6s.
8d. The new Ryal or Rose Noble
denomination was nice and user-friendly at 10 shillings. However, it wasn’t. The noble had been around for so long that
6s. 8d. had actually become the professionals’ standard fee. Whilst these professionals wouldn’t have
minded being the beneficiary of a not inconsequential pay rise virtually
overnight, the people who employed these individuals were most certainly not up
for that. Thus the new 10 shilling Ryal
or Rose Noble denomination was itself superseded just 5 years later by the gold
Angel and everyone was happy because the Angel circulated at, wait for it,
exactly the same as the old Noble - 6s. 8d, or at least it did until Henry VIII
got involved when, somewhat counter-intuitively, it increased to 7s. 6d in his
Second Coinage! At virtually full weight
and VF grade, this is a lovely example of an iconic English late Medieval
hammered gold coin. £6,850
WAu-7940:
Henry VII
Hammered Tudor Gold Angel. Type IV,
rarer Greyhound Head initial mark (1502-4), Spink 2185. This is the first Greyhound Head angel I have
had. Very much the new dies type - angel
with both feet on the dragon as opposed to the old type with just one
foot. A nice, presentable rarer initial
mark hammered gold angel, ex mount, for well under £2,000 (possibly even
cheaper if you take up the Coin News advert challenge?!) Good look in finding any other Angel, for any
monarch, for sale at under £2K these days.
£1,850 RESERVED (M.He.21-12-23)
WAu-7311:
Henry VIII
Hammered Gold Crown of the Double Rose. Third coinage, initial mark none / WS
monogram, 1544-47, Bristol mint. Spink 2310.
Ex Spink (various
tickets here). Slightly wavy flan
with minor edge splits. A very popular
coin and invariably a minimum of £5K in today’s market. This one priced very competitively at £4,295
WAu-9023: Edward VI Tudor Hammered
Gold Half Sovereign. Although struck
within the early period of Edward's reign, they all bear the name AND portrait
of his father, Henry VIII. A youthful
portrayal of Henry - a strange choice of depiction, bearing in mind Henry was
not only elderly but also dead at this point! - with sceptre. Initial mark Arrow. Lozenge stops on the obverse; broken
quatrefoils on the reverse. Spink 2391,
Schneider 660, North 1865. Always a
problematic issue, the dies poor and the end product rarely, if ever, struck up
properly. See here for weight and
tickets. This coin above average for
issue. £2,385 RESERVED (R.E.28-11-24)
Provenance
Ex Michael Trenerry
WAu-9046:
1602 James VI Hammered
Gold Sword & Sceptre Piece of 120 Shillings. Eighth gold coinage (1601-4), struck in 22ct
gold whilst James was still only James VI of Scotland. Edinburgh mint. Obv: +IACOBVS 6 D.G.R. SCOTORVM. Spink 5460.
It is generally accepted that Scottish coinage is much more attractive
than its English counterpart, especially from the James V until 1603 period
when James ascended the English throne and, by necessity, the two country's
followed a more unified path in terms of coinage. This Sword & Sceptre piece is absolutely
no exception to that aesthetic appraisal.
As such, these coins often turn up impaired; being found mounted or
pierced in order to display on the body in the form of jewellery. Gold coins are also frequently found with
bite marks and creases, often straightened but always leaving a crease
mark. This coin is a superb example with
none of that, although it has been cleaned at some point in its 420 year
life. Scottish coins of quality are
increasing in value seemingly overnight; gold coinage much more so, which is
the main reason I can no longer offer Lay-Away on any gold coins. Here you have both an investment opportunity
together with a seriously attractive coin to potentially go into your
collection. £2,895
WAu-7816:
1673 Charles II
Restoration Period Milled Full Gold Guinea.
Fourth laureate bust with the rounded truncation. John & Joseph Roettier dies with
Blondeau’s machinery – the milling on the edge of the coin was a safeguard
against clipping which had been not just a thorn in the side of every hammered
period, but rather a stake. The practise
of clipping officially ended here after several hundred years. The Guinea was so named because some of the
gold bullion used came from the country of Guinea, via the Africa Company. It was a 20 shilling denomination, directly
replacing the short-lived 1662 gold Broad of 20 shillings. The racehorse aficionados among you are
probably crying out “21 shillings, 21 shillings!” but revaluation of a guinea
to that amount took place in 1717 under George 1st. Incidentally, there were times prior to 1717
where the actual value of a guinea (and remember, the value of any coin,
guineas very much included, was entirely based on the precious metal content)
was even higher than 21 shillings due to market fluctuations in the value, or
spot price of gold. Spink 3344. No mount marks. £2,775
WAu-7817:
1701 William III
Milled Full Gold Guinea. Second laureate
bust with a proliferation of hair. The
milling on the edge of the coin was a safeguard against clipping which had been
not just a thorn in the side of every hammered period, but rather a stake. The practise of clipping officially ended
with the introduction of milled coinage in 1662. The Guinea was so named because some of the
gold bullion used came from the country of Guinea, via the Africa Company. It was a 20 shilling denomination, directly
replacing the short-lived 1662 gold Broad of 20 shillings of the earlier
Charles II. The racehorse aficionados
among you are probably crying out “21 shillings, 21 shillings!” but revaluation
of a guinea to that amount took place in 1717 under George 1st. Incidentally, there were times prior to 1717
where the actual value of a guinea (and remember, the value of any coin,
guineas very much included, was entirely based on the precious metal content)
was even higher than 21 shillings due to market fluctuations in the value, or
spot price of gold. Spink 3463. Ex Morton & Eden (their ticket sold with
this coin) for £2,000 hammer (£2,600 after commissions) in 2022, ex Spink. No mount marks and really, a very nice grade
example for a William III guinea. £2,975
WAu-7818:
1714 Queen Anne
Milled Full Gold Guinea. Post
Scottish union, third draped bust. The
milling on the edge of the coin was a safeguard against clipping which had been
not just a thorn in the side of every hammered period, but rather a stake. The practise of clipping officially ended
with the introduction of milled coinage in 1662. The Guinea was so named because some of the
gold bullion used came from the country of Guinea, via the Africa Company. It was a 20 shilling denomination, directly
replacing the short-lived 1662 gold Broad of 20 shillings of the earlier
Charles II. The racehorse aficionados
among you are probably crying out “21 shillings, 21 shillings!” but revaluation
of a guinea to that amount took place in 1717 under George 1st. Incidentally, there were times prior to 1717
where the actual value of a guinea (and remember, the value of any coin,
guineas very much included, was entirely based on the precious metal content)
was even higher than 21 shillings due to market fluctuations in the value, or
spot price of gold. It won’t have
escaped your notice that with Queen Anne gold coinage in particular, when they
do come up, they are almost always HALF guineas. It really is hard work finding full
guineas. Spink 3574. Ex Spink with associated
Spink tickets. Interestingly, Spink
now appear to use the Ellerby
Hoard as a classification guide – their classification is “Ellerby
181-190”, meaning lots 181 through to 190 in the Ellerby Hoard sale that they
conducted were all 1714 Queen Anne Guineas.
For context, the Ellerby Hoard is a hoard of 266 17th-18th century hammered
and milled gold coins found in a manganese-mottled salt-glazed stoneware vessel
in the garden of a house in Ellerby, East Riding of Yorkshire in 2019. Hoard estimate £200,000; hammer
£750,000. As this guinea is ex Spink
(but not ex Ellerby), I think it only fair to compare. The Ellerby coin that I’ve attached here,
lot 187, is clearly not quite as good grade as the one on offer on this
website. Never-the-less, both attracted
a Spink grade of “pleasing VF” (NGC got a little carried away and graded it
About Uncirculated!) The Ellerby coin
sold for £4,000 after commissions, and that was several years ago with the
market ever moving upwards. Obviously
there’s a small premium for provenance to consider as it was very good provenance. This coin: no mount marks, some lustre, well
struck up. £3,275
