Penny of Aethelred II

I’ve known Bob Greenaway for many years but we have never met face to face. This is the case with many other detectorists I know. I was talking to someone on the telephone many years since and it transpired that quite recently we had both been on the same large outing. I said that it was a pity we hadn’t met for a chat. The chap said that I couldn’t have missed him, for he had tattoos down the side of his face! Quite frankly, if I’d seen someone like that approaching me I might have gone in the opposite direction.

Bob’s coin is an Anglo-Saxon penny. For him this was a particularly significant find. It turned up on 22 February and this was his first Anglo-Saxon penny in 25 years of searching. We all get a great thrill when we unearth something that has evaded us for such a long time. However, Bob had difficulty in pinning it down so he asked if I would assist him.

The coin is a penny of Aethelred II. On the obverse the legend around a right-facing bust with no sceptre in front starts with AEÐILRE; the letter D has wedges on the upright, which turns it into TH. On the reverse is the hand of providence flanked by alfa and omega and the end of the legend reads LVND. Therefore, the coin is a first hand type penny of Aethered II and the mint is London. In the Standard Catalogue pennies of this type are listed and illustrated as number 1144.

Sadly, this penny is not in good condition. The detail shows up reasonably well on both sides but the flan is badly chipped and roughly 40% is missing. On the plus site we know the reign, type and mint and even though its condition could be a lot better the day of its discovery will always be remembered by Bob.

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