Harold II (1066), PAX type with Sceptre [BMC I; N 836; S 1186], Penny, Maldon, Godwine, Gp B, +h[–]rold rex an, rev. +godpine on mel, 1.37g/9h (Bt 97, this coin; Pagan, NM p.194 [two examples noted]; BMC –; CB 660, same dies). Some peripheral weakness, otherwise good very fine and extremely rare; light hoard patina over fresh bright metal £2,400-£3,000

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Braintree Hoard of Late Anglo-Saxon Pennies.

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Collection

Struck from the same dies as Braintree 95 & 96

Few pennies of Maldon are known from the reign of Edward the Confessor, and even fewer from that of Harold (there was only one example in Chew Valley). The presence of three die-duplicates here can be explained by the proximity of the mint to Braintree. In a later period Maldon appears to have held a close relationship with the nearby mint of Colchester; Naismith notes that in 1086 ‘the two made a joint payment to the king for their respective minting privileges’. The co-operation of the two mints can also be detected in the reign of Edward when Godwine (Maldon’s sole moneyer under Harold) was temporarily transferred to Colchester during the currency of the Hammer Cross type.