Description
Denomination: Silver penny
Period: Plantagenets
Date: c1223-1242
Origin: Canterbury mint. Tomas moneyer
Condition: Almost very fine. good portrait. pierced (for adornment. object of devotion or lucky charm?) two slight flan edge cracks
Obverse: Crowned facing bust. sceptre in right hand. legend around (in father’s name) hENRICVS REX
Reverse: Voided short cross with quatrefoil of pellets in each angle. within beaded circle. legend around +TOMAS ON CANTE
Size and Weight: 1.46g. 18.5mm
References: Spink 1356B. N979
Features and Provenance: From the Eccles Collection of English Coins via Spink. Considered class 7b with flat-topped ‘A’.
From the coins of Henry II. through those of Richard and John. the coinage style had changed little but the quality had deteriorated. With the first (yes. first) coronation of Henry III in 1216 at the age of just 9. Henry succeeded his father. John. during times of strife and this maybe why the coinage was not re-vamped for the next 30 years. The pope at the time. effectively Henry’s superior. deemed the first coronation that had carried out in a rush (to stop Louis of France from taking the English throne) at Gloucester Cathedral. as not properly carried out – he even had to borrow robes and have them cut down to size and use his mother’s headdress as a crown! The second coronation was re-enacted in 1220. properly this time. Later. in 1225 baronial unrest was quelled. when. unlike his father he willingly sealed and signed the Magna Carta (in fact three times) and it became enshrined in English law. He ruled for 56 years. so this very often overlooked English monarch. must have done something right to last that long!
Condition Summary. This varies with the age of coin and there are grades in between
Uncirculated (U). As struck with no traces of wear
Extremely Fine (EF). Very slight traces of wear. all parts of legend etc present. visible and clear
Very Fine (VF). Some signs of wear on the higher parts of the relief. all parts of legend etc present. but maybe worn
Fine (F). Wear on the coin and parts of legend etc may be missing or not visible
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.