The Coinage of Æthelred II: a New Evaluation

TY - JOUR

T1 - The Coinage of Æthelred II: a New Evaluation

AU - Naismith, Rory George Robert

PY - 2016/2/17

Y1 - 2016/2/17

N2 - Even at the beginning of his long and turbulent reign (978–1016), Æthelred II's coinage was an impressive institution. Mint-places across the kingdom issued silver pennies of identical design, each sporting an image of the king surrounded by his name and title while the reverse named both the man responsible for manufacture (the moneyer) and the location where he produced the coin. Æthelred and his subjects inherited this currency from Edgar (959–75) and Edward the Martyr (975–8), but were not content to rest on their laurels. Indeed, the reign of Æthelred saw the evolution of the most ambitious form of coinage yet seen in England. Nationwide recoinages became frequent for the first time since the ninth century, and the coinage emerged as a potent tool of symbolic expression. It probably also helped attract the attention of Viking aggressors, and facilitated the collection and transfer of tribute.

AB - Even at the beginning of his long and turbulent reign (978–1016), Æthelred II's coinage was an impressive institution. Mint-places across the kingdom issued silver pennies of identical design, each sporting an image of the king surrounded by his name and title while the reverse named both the man responsible for manufacture (the moneyer) and the location where he produced the coin. Æthelred and his subjects inherited this currency from Edgar (959–75) and Edward the Martyr (975–8), but were not content to rest on their laurels. Indeed, the reign of Æthelred saw the evolution of the most ambitious form of coinage yet seen in England. Nationwide recoinages became frequent for the first time since the ninth century, and the coinage emerged as a potent tool of symbolic expression. It probably also helped attract the attention of Viking aggressors, and facilitated the collection and transfer of tribute.

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/84960411534

U2 - 10.1080/0013838X.2015.1125126

DO - 10.1080/0013838X.2015.1125126

M3 - Article

SN - 0013-838X

VL - 97

SP - 117

EP - 139

JO - ENGLISH STUDIES

JF - ENGLISH STUDIES

IS - 2

ER -