Date: First reign, c. 941-944/5

Description:

Hiberno-Norse (Northumbria). Anlaf Sihtricsson (Cuaran). First reign, 941-944/5. Silver Penny (19mm, 0.96 g, 11h). Triquetra type. York mint; Farmann, moneyer. CTCE Group V, b-q; SCBI 30 (American), 278 var. (obv. legend); SCBI 34 (BM), 1249-52 var. (legends); North 540; SCBC 1020.

• Almost Extremely Fine (aEF)
  • Rich old tone, lightly creased with minor edge cracks
• Very rare

Obverse:

• Triquetra
• + ΛNLΛF CVNVNC (inverted T)

The triquetra, a common element in interlace design and a motif the recurs on 11th-century Danish and Norwegian coins, and a triangular banner of distinctive Viking form found in Scandinavian metalwork and on some rare London coins of Cnut.

Yet this design can also be recognized in a Christian context: the triquetra represents the Trinity in some 7th-/8th-century art, and the triangular banner on the coins is decorated with a cross.

Reverse:

• Fringed triangular standard bearing ‘X’ on cross-tipped pole.
• + F·A·RH·A·H MONETA

Country:

• Northumbria

Category:

• Hiberno-Norse
  • Kingdom of Northumbria
• Hammered

Additional Reading:

• O’Brien Coin Guide: Anglo-Saxon Coins & Their Links to Ireland
• O’Brien Coin Guide: Coinage of the Viking Kingdom of York (AD 895-954) coming soon
• O’Brien Coin Guide: Coinage of the Viking Kingdom of Northumbria (AD 921-952)
• O’Brien Coin Guide: Who Introduced Anglo-Saxon Coins to Ireland and why ?