London – British Museum (13th Century Coin from Norwich Mint)

I usually visit the British Museum three or four times a year, something which is a little difficult to do with the current virus situation, primarily because it’s shut. However, they’ve placed hundreds of thousands of images on their web-site, so this will have to do me for the moment. The images can be used non-commercially, as long as the British Museum is credited. So, this is their credit.

I like this, it’s a coin which was minted in Norwich between 1201 and 1207, when this city was one of nine mints across the country. It’s known as short cross coin and it was minted by the moneyer who was known as Renaud (or Renald). I’m not sure that anyone knows where for sure this mint was, but it was probably at what is now known as Old Mint Yard, off Fishergate.

The coin was part of the Eccles Hoard, a huge collection of over 6,000 coins which were discovered in November 1864, mostly silver pennies, and it’s thought that they were buried in around 1230. The coin was purchased by Sir John Evans, and then acquired by John Pierpont Morgan (better known today for being the force behind JP Morgan) and then by the British Museum in 1915 after Morgan died.

And, I wouldn’t have seen it if the British Museum was open, as this coin isn’t on display.