Celtic currency of Britain
[1] Coin use is usually divided into a core area which covers the home counties as well as parts of Oxfordshire, Northamptonshire and Cambridgeshire.
[2] This was surrounded by a periphery of coin using groups some of which, the Corieltauvi, Durotriges, Dobunni and Iceni, appear to have minted their own coinage.
[7] What appears to be iron bar currency was mentioned in Julius Caesar's Commentarii de Bello Gallico.
[11] More specific names for individual coin types generally consist of catalog numbers, although in some cases simple descriptions are used.
[13] First, a fairly exact amount (accuracies of a few milligrams or better have been recorded) of metal would be weighed out in the form of powder or nugget.
[13] The dies were frequently larger than the blanks being struck, resulting in only part of the design appearing on the coin.
[13] Experimental archaeology suggests that a lower die could be expected to last for up to 10,000 strikes depending on the level of wear deemed acceptable.
[14] Combining archaeological evidence with historic records suggests ancient coin producers could get as many as 47,000 strikes out of an individual die.
[13] The earliest coins to appear in the British archaeological record are third or fourth century BC Carthaginian bronzes, although it seems unlikely that they were used as currency.
[15] Post antiquity a direct trade route for Greek coins into Britain has existed since the creation of the Levant Company in the late 16th century.
[18] These coins followed designs ultimately derived from the staters issued by Philip II of Macedon and were made from gold.
[19] Six series of Gallo-Belgic staters issues are known as A through to F with subtypes such as AA and AB (in this case defined by the direction in which the bust faces).
[23] Ambiani coins have been found along the south coast of the West Country, possibly arriving there as the result of trade across the English Channel.
[23] Kentish cast bronzes (historically referred to as Thurrock potins) appear to have been the first coins made in Britain dating from the end of the second century BC.
[24] They appear to have circulated mainly in Kent and were based on coins issued by Massalia (now Marseille in modern France).
[27] Although potins were around at the same time as the first British gold coins they aren't found together which suggests they served a different role in society.
[30] At much the same time or shortly afterwards, a range of uninscribed British staters was produced by various groups, with inscribed coins not appearing until after 50BC.
[44] Another feature in the later part of Tasciovanus's rule are coins in the names of Andoco, Sego, Dias, and Rues.
[45] A number of Addedomarus's coins featured a palm branch, which also appeared on the stater of his apparent successor Dubnovellaunus.
[46] His bronze and silver coins developed over time from Celtic-influenced designs to those influenced by a very wide range of Mediterranean coinage.
[47] Tincommius initially issued coins that followed much the same pattern as Commius but at the end of the first century BC switched to heavily Roman-inspired designs with what has been called the proto-classical series.
[47][50] In all Tincommius's coins have been divided into 4 series; first the Celtic then the Proto-classical, followed by the Crude and Classical which appear to have been struck around the same time.
[57][58] A small number of coins have been found in kent that appear to have been jointly minted by Eppillus, Tincommius and a third leader named Verica.
[47][61] Differences in style between coins suggests that Verica was operating two mints one using an engraver formerly employed by Eppillus and the other derived from Tincommius.
[47] The first inscribed coinage in this area appear to have been struck by the Corieltauvi around AD 1 and were closely based on the proceeding British K stater.
[64] The other main tribal group in this region was the Iceni who started producing inscribed coins around AD 20.
[41] The symbol's significance and origins are unclear although corn, ferns and a derivative of the wreath on the British Q stater have all been suggested.
[41] The Durotriges issued a series of rapidly debased coins through this period probably starting around 50BC with a largely silver (80%) stater (British B) with a fairly small percentage of gold.
[71] The other is a hoard, found near Netherurd, that contained forty-plus Globules à la Croix (bullet coins) along with a number of gold torcs.
[71] With the defeat of the Iceni and the occupation of their territory the minting of Celtic coinage came to an end; the cast coins of Hengistbury Head may have continued a few years longer.
