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Auction: 15004 - Ancient, British and Foreign Coins and Commemorative Medals
Lot: 479

Hiberno-Norse Vikings, Sihtric Caoch (921-927), Penny, 1.08g, Circumscription or anonymous sword type, mint south of the Humber, probably Lincoln, +edeveahre, sword with spine placed vertically across field, the pommel pointing towards the initial cross, rev. eivievic[.] Thor's hammer placed vertically across field (Blackburn A4 var, Pl.28 - A4; N.533; S.1013), fragile area at 8 o' clock which has been professionally stabilised, small scratch in field by sword hilt, deeply toned, full and supremely sharp, this piece as struck and extremely fine, an excessively rare piece for which just two specimens are known to be in private hands

In 'Viking Coinage and Currency in the British Isles' from a paper published in 2005 Mark Blackburn listed five known examples of the Circumscription sword type. Of these five known examples three are fragments and there is a total of four residing in museum collections. A sixth example was subsequently recorded, c.f. Coin Register 2010, No 202 (EMC 2009.0243) and this is the first known example in the name of a known king; Sihric Caoch. One more additional piece, a fragment of the central field design, was found in 2010, c.f. Coin Register 2011, No 105 (EMC 2010.0213) bringing the total known to seven. This is the eigth known specimen of this type and arguably the finest

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Sold for
£7,000