Silver 'sceatta'
Anglo-Saxon, issued AD701-750
Found by metal-detectorist in the Itchen Valley, Hampshire
'Sceattas' such as this were the earliest Anglo-Saxon coins struck in Britain, first appearing at the beginning of the 7th century. Of the numerous types known most had Roman coins as their prototypes, which is unsurprising since Roman coins must still have been fairly common at that date. Designs were copied and sometimes the legends, which were often rendered meaningless perhaps suggesting that the engraver was illiterate. This is an example of a series H, type 39 sceatta, a type that can be attributed to Hamwic, the Middle Saxon predecessor of Southampton. The reverse design shows a walking bird pecking at a series of dots. The obverse shows a facing moustached head.
