An Interesting Re-cut Penny Reverse Die for Early Edward II

D. I. Greenhalgh (Grunal Moneta) 2020

In his great work ‘English Hammered Coinage Vols I and II’ published in 1963 J. J. North breaks class 10down into six sub-classes 10a, 10b, 10c-e with 3 different crowns and 10f. Later C Wood wrote, in the

‘Sylloge of Coins of the British Isles . 39 The J. J. North Collection Edwardian English Silver Coins 1279 -1351’, published in 1989, his research into class 10 and re classifies it into class 10ab - with six subclasses,and 10cf with five different crowns designated crown 1 through to crown 5 with 14 sub-sub classes. ‘TheGalata Guide to the Pennies of Edward I and II’, by Paul and Bente R Withers, Galata Print 2006 refines andsimplifies this arrangement into just the 5 crown variants.It is with class 10c-f crown 3 struck mid 1307 - 1309 that this note is concerned. It is probably the largestgroup of the 10c-f complex with coins being issued from London, Bury St Edmund, Canterbury, Durham SedeVacante and Durham Bishop Bec. During this group, as well as other groups from this complex, that variationsoccur by the addition of stops usually at the end of the legend. This feature is found for London, Bury StEdmund, Canterbury and both Archiepiscopal and Sede Vacante issues for DurhamI recently acquired from Ebay a Canterbury coin of class 10c-f of crown 3 with double pellet stop at the endof the obverse legend, the listing also mentioned an over-struck letter T over N in the reverse legend. Onexamining the coin in the hand the reverse mint name CAN TOR was over-struck on the mint name LONDON (see enlarged photo # 1 & 2). Examination of the obverse die revealed a die cutting fault of 4 tiny pelletstravelling vertically from the inner circle at about 7 o clock (see enlarged photo # 3) this feature coupled withthe double pellet terminal stop made die linking easy. Examining the J. J. North Sylloge revealed a die linkto the obverse in coin 637, a London mint coin, purchased by J. J. North from Baldwin's in 1980.This leads to an interesting conundrum - is this a London/Canterbury mule or a London set of dies altered toread Canterbury and then sent for use to the mint at Canterbury?

Edward II class 10c-fcrown 3

Canterbury / London1.31g

Enlargement # 1C and A over L and O

Enlargement # 2T and R over D and N

Enlargement # 34 tiny pellets

Enlargement # 3a4 tiny pellets

J.J. North Sylloge coinNo 637

J.J. North Sylloge coinNo 637crown 31.25g

Edward II class 10c-fcrown 3

Canterbury / London1.31g