Penny of Harold II
The detectorist who unearthed the hammered silver coin pictured here wishes to remain anonymous but asked for my opinion on the commercial value of his find.
The coin is a penny of Harold II, who was killed in 1066 by men loyal to William, Duke of Normandy. The death of Harold ended a long line of Anglo-Saxon Kings of England.
On the obverse the head of Harold faces left and has a sceptre in front. Within the inner circle on the reverse is PAX with a beaded line above and below; the surrounding legend reads +LEOFSI ON LVNDEN. Therefore, the mint is London and the moneyer is Leofsige (abbreviated to Leofsi on this penny).
Valuation
The surface on both sides is rough in places and there is what looks like a crack at about 9 o’clock on the obverse. With just photographs to work from it is impossible to tell how long the crack is. Overall, the coin would benefit if it was cleaned by someone skilled in this line of work.
Having never seen or handled the coin the only figure I can give is based upon photographs. From what I can see of the coin I’d place upon it a pre-sale auction estimate of £2,000. However, if the work of a skilled conservator improved its eye appeal then my estimate would rise.
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