Gallo-Belgic issues, Stater, series A [Ambiani], head of Apollo left, rev. horse left, disjointed charioteer above, rosette of pellets below, 7.64g/10h (Sills class 5; VA 12; S 2). Good yellow gold, obverse good very fine, reverse very fine, very rare
£1,500-1,800

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Chris Morrison Collection of Ancient British Coins.

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Collection

Provenance: H.R. Mossop Collection; SCMB March 1980 (A205); SCMB February 1981 (EG 12); L.R. Stack Collection, Sotheby Auction, 22-3 April 1999, lot 9; C. Rudd FPL 51, May 2000 (13); DNW Auction 61, 17 March 2004, lot 444. CCI 73.0530.

Dr John Sills believes that these early Staters may have been minted by the Bellovaci, rather than the Ambiani. Coins of Sills class 5 show a deliberate simplification of the design, so that dies could be engraved quicker, suggesting a sudden increase in minting activity. The great majority of class 5 coins have been found in Britain which implies a large batch struck for export to south-eastern England, possibly in payment for military service