James II of Spain, dinero
This coin was spotted on Facebook and a detectorist who knows me asked what it was. I identified it and inquired if I could put it up on my website. It turned out that it was found by Jared Ross, who gave me the okay to feature his find.
The coin has on one side a crowned bust facing left and a legend reading ARA GOn. Within the inner circle on the other side is what is sometimes described as a double cross but it should be referred to as a Cross of Lorraine; the legend on this side reads IACOBVS REX.
Jared’s find was struck for James II, who was King of Spain from 1291 to 1327 and King of Sicily from 1285 to 1295. It is a dinero and the mint that produced it was situated somewhere in Aragon. This isn’t a rare coin but is certainly unusual as a UK find. As such it should really be reported with the Portable Antiquities Scheme, to add another piece to the jigsaw of foreign coins that circulated in England.
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