Richard II, penny

This hammered silver coin came in from Paul Marland. The condition could be better but enough detail shows up for a full identification.

The coin is a York penny of Richard II, which was struck from local dies. This means that the dies were made in York rather than being sent there from London.

What can be seen of the obverse legend reads +RICARDVS REX AnG—. There is a cross on the king’s breast, pellets on his shoulders and all the stops are double saltires.

The legend on the reverse reads CIVI TAS EBO RACI. There is a pellet after EBO and an extra pellet in the EBO quarter. In the Standard Catalogue Richard II pennies of this type are listed as number 1692. Paul’s find has a number of weak and/or flat areas and overall it would grade only Fair. On the plus side, it is a distinctive and scarce type for Richard II.