Viking Designs
Drawing of a St Edmund Penny
Between 895 and 915, Scandinavian settlers in East Anglia minted a series of pennies and half pennies with the inscription SCE EADMVND REX (St Edmund the king). These coins appear to have been used widely throughout the Danelaw, and a large number of them were discovered in the Cuerdale Hoard from Lancashire.
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Viking Objects
Reproduction Viking Silver Penny
This reproduction of a Viking silver penny immitates those minited bu the Vikign rulers of York in the tenth century. Viking rulers in the Danelaw eventually took up the Anglo-Saxon practice of minting coins which helped legitimise their authority.
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Viking Objects
Silver Penny (1914/543-1)
This silver penny of King Aethelstan, who was King of England from 927-939, was minted in Derby by the moneyer Gadierd between 937-939. It is not known where it was found. Moneyers were people who were permitted to mint money on behalf of the king. Minting coins was a way of controlling the means of exchange within a kingdom and which created a more easily administered standardized system of trade. Moreover, the coins themselves were often used as propaganda, portaying symbols and statements that gave off a desired message. The Vikings later used the minting of coins to legitimize their own rule.
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Viking Objects
Coin of Cnut the Great (NARC-9AE391)
This silver Helmet IIIc Type penny was minted for King Cnut of England by the moneyer Eadwine in Thetford. The obverse displays + CNUT RECXA with a figure wearing a pointed helmet. The reverse displays + EDPINE ON DEOD and a voided short cross. Minting coins was a way of controlling the means of exchange within a kingdom and which created a more easily administered standardized system of trade. Moreover, the coins themselves were often used as propaganda, portaying symbols and statements that gave off a desired message. The Vikings later used the minting of coins to legitimize their own rule.
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Viking Objects
Viking Silver Penny (DENO-7A0AF7)
An incomplete silver early medieval penny of the Vikings possibly minted in the name of Sihtric and imitating swordless St Peter Two-Line Type coins which were minted in York, c.905-920. Sihtric Caoch was the Scandinavian ruler of Dublin from 917-920 CE and subsequently the ruler of Northumbria from 921-927 CE. It is not certain why he left Ireland. The Irish annals state that it was ‘through the grace of God’ and do not elaborate on the politics behind his departure. After the establishment of the Danelaw, some Viking leaders decided to mint their own coins to solidify their legitimacy in the eyes of the local populace. This created a hybrid economy where some members of the Danelaw used bullion and others used coins.
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Viking Objects
Aethelred II Penny (LIN-8887C3)
A cut CRUX-type penny minted by Hundulf of York on behalf of King Aethelred II. While this coin is Anglo-Saxon, the fact that it has been cut may suggest that it was used as a part of a bullion transaction in line with the dual bullion-monetary economy established by the Vikings in England.