Just won this lot at auction

So I got up at 5am this morning to bid on the Dix Noonan Webb auction from London. A few weeks ago I was scouring the listings and came upon this lot. The middle coin caught my attention. The initial description did not mention the attributions of the coins, one had to click on the listing and then one could see the full attributions. I am glad I did because the middle coin I noticed turned out to be an Eleanor of Aquitaine denier.

I have wanted a coin of Eleanor for at least a year, but they come up for sale rarely. When they do, collectors tend to grab them quickly and bid strongly. This coin will make an excellent and welcome addition to my "Historical figures dramatized by Shakespeare" collection.

Eleanor was one of the most important, powerful, and interesting female historical figures. She led a crusade, was queen of France, queen of England, and the mother of kings John and Richard I.


Of course the other 4 coins are not too bad either. The entire lot consisted of 5 Anglo-Gallic coins. This included 2 coins of Richard I (another target of mine), and 2 unusual coins of Edward I. The first one is of Edward as the heir to the throne, and the second was minted just after he took the throne. The latter coin of Edward is quite rare. I only found 1 example on acsearch and 0 in the CNG archives. this the first group lot I have bought at an auction. If the Eleanor had been alone I would have only bid on that coin. If you have any stories of how you bought an entire lot for one coin, please share them here.

Here is the detailed description of the coins:
BRITISH COINS, Anglo-Gallic Coins, Richard I, Deniers for Poitou (2), no extra marks, 1.04g/1h, annulet in third quarter, 1.09g/5h (Elias 8, 8b; W 343; S 8008); Eleanor, Denier, Aquitaine, 0.69g/12h (E 11; W 9; S 8011); Edward I, Deniers (2), as heir to the throne, 0.92g/10h, as King, 0.88g/3h (E 13, 15; W 11, 13; S 8013, 8015) [5].Fine or better, last rare


Please feel free to post your Anglo-Gallic coins, or any hammered coins at all. Of course I would love to see any coins of Eleanor, Richard I, or Edward I.

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

That is a great set of coins @Orfew I really like the denier of Eleanor too, and to get the rare denier of Edward I is a great bonus. The Anglo-Gallic issues of the English kings are some of my favorite coins. If you don't have the book Anglo-Gallic Coins by P & B.R. Withers I would highly recommend it. @FitzNigel wrote a really good review of it. It can be found here: https://www.cointalk.com/threads/fitzs-medieval-book-review.286343/

I'll add a few coins from my Anglo-Gallic ranks. I still need to acquire the denier of Edward I.


Richard Coeur de Lion AR Denier 1171-1185 A.D. Poitou mint (19mm 0.9g)
Obv: +RICARDVS REX (horizontal S) cross pattee
Rev: PIC/TAVIE/NSIS in three line crescent above I
Elias 8e Scarce



Edward III AR Esterlin 1335-1337 A.D. Bordeaux mint (18mm 1.32g)
Obv: EDWARD' REX AnGL' Crowned bust facing slightly left, leopard below
Rev: DVX AQV ITA nIE long cross pattee terminated in trefoils, crowns in quarters
Elias 56


Edward the Black Prince AR Hardi d'Argent 1362-1372 A.D. Limoges mint (19mm 1.17g)
Obv: ED PO GIR EG · AGEL half-length figure of Edward facing beneath Gothic canopy, holding sword in right, left in benediction.
Rev: * PRI CPS · AQT AnE long cross pattée; lis in first and fourth quarters, leopard in second and third.
Elias 204

 

FANTASTIC score! Those are ALL great looking Hammereds! I would take any/all of them. Are they normally this detailed and centered? And why in a multiple lot vs auctioned individually? They each look good as single lots!

I rarely consider multiple coin lots as I target what I am looking for, and generally some of my odd collecting habits do not come in multiple lots. Well done! I really do not collect this Era... but, perhaps one day...I.just.might.get.hammered...

The ONLY coins I have REMOTELY near this time/type are (Pert-near Moderns to me!):

English:


England - Elizabeth I - 1558-1603 AR Shilling


England - Elizabeth I 1558-1603 AR Sixpence 3rd-4th issue crescent mintmark


England Elizabeth I AR 3 Pence 1566 Her bust l rose shield 19 mm G


The only coins that I have NEAR Elanor of Aquitaine's time (1137-1204):


AYYUBID Caliphate - Saladin al-Nasir Salah al Din Yusuf AH564-589 1169-1193 CE AR Dirham
(He kinda thwarted the whole Crusade-thing that Elanor may had been involved..)

 

Awesome coins, folks!
Here, one of my Anglo-Gallic coins, that I have pics at this moment:

Salut D'Or (25 sols) - Henry VI (1422-1461)
Diameter: 27 mm
Weight: 3.43 gr.
Metal: Gold
Mint: Saint-Lô (fleur-de-lis), Normandy
Date: September 1423 (2th emission)
Mintmaster: Arnoulet Rame

Obverse: hЄИRICVS : DЄI : GRA : FRACORVm : Z : AGLIЄ : RЄX :

Reverse: (fleur-de-lis) XPC · VIИCIT · XPC · RЄGИAT · XPC · ImPЄRAT :

 

Congrats on your win! It's always a great feeling to come away from an anticipated auction with your target lots won.

 

Nice, would love an Eleanor too. The other coins are also nice.

 

Nice lot @Orfew!

Here's my two Anglo-Gallic coins -- Eleanor of Aquitaine, which I purchased a few minutes after the dealer bought it -- and Edward I.

ENGLAND, Eleanor of Aquiltaine
1137-1152
AR Denier .84 gm - 17 mm
Obv: Two crosses with A Ω.
Rev: Cross
Reference: El.11

ENGLAND, Richard I
1272-1307 AD (minted 1289-1291)
AR Penny of London class 5a 1.28gm - 20 mm
Obv: Crowned bust facing.
Rev: Long cross with three pellets in each angle
Reference: S.1399 N1028(S)

 

Thanks for the kind words. I love your coins. I especially like the very interesting portrait on the Edward III. Thanks also for the book recommendation and link to the review. I just visited the Spink site and ordered a copy.
I really like this area of collecting. The coins are interesting and hunting for them is fun.
To be honest since I only have the coins I just won plus a Hardi d'argent of Edward the Black prince, I am not sure the book is vital to my collection. However, I am interested in these coins and the review was great so...why not.

 

That is just lovely! I have my eye on a nice piece of hammered gold at the moment. If I win it I will post it. In the meantime, thanks for posting that incredible coin.

 

Thanks @Alegandron for the kind words. As for the condition, I am not an expert on medieval coins, but these looked very good to me. I saw the same things you did, nice centering and good details.
I really like your coins of Elizabeth. The dirham is very nice as well. Just to prove that we are thinking along similar lines here is my coin of Saladin.

 

Very nice Eleanor. I knew there were a few members on here who had one. Thanks for posting it.

 

I wondered about this as well. I certainly would have sold them one at a time. I forgot to add that they are also a part of "coins and historical medals formed by the late Revd. Charles Campbell."

 

Awesome score!!! congrats. I'm glad I didn't look through this auction or I would have bid you up on this lot.

 

Nice lot man! I agree that individually these would have done great as well. Congrats!

I’m afraid my collection really lacks some nice Anglo-Gallics, apparently I focus more on mainland Britain. But, do coins of the English model, but minted in Calais, also count? If so, I have two. The pictures are taken from the auction house, so I really need to reshoot them. In hand they just look that little bit different:



Henry VI (1422 – 1461 and 1470 -1471), AR Halfpenny (0.43 gram), Annulet issue (1422 – 1427). Spink 1849, Calais mint. Obv. Usual regal bust, annulets next to neck, inscription: “+HENRIC : REX : ANGL”. Rev. Extra annulets in fields 1 and 3, “VIL – LA : - CAL – IS :”. Double saltire interpunction, mintmark plain cross.



Henry VI (1422 – 1461 and 1470 -1471), AR Groat (3.35 gram), Rosette-Mascle issue (1427 – 1430). Spink 1859, Calais mint. Obv. Usual bust, “HENRIC*DI*GRA*REX◊ANGL*Z*FRANC”. Rev. “+POSVI* – DEUM : A – DIVTOR – E : MEUM” in outer circle, “VIL – ◊LA : - CALI – SIE*” on the inner circle. Mixed double saltire, mascle and rosette interpunction. Mintmark Cross patonce/plain cross.

And just to finish off my Henry VI set, a slightly rarer issue, not from Calais:



Henry VI (1422 – 1461 and 1470 -1471), AR Groat (3.27 gram), Cross-Pellet issue (1454 – 1460). Spink 1935, London mint. Obv. Usual bust, but with saltire on neck and pellets next to crown, “HENRIC : DI GRA REX ANGL Z FRANC”. Rev. “[?]POSVI – DEUM A – DIVTOR – E MEUM” in outer circle, “CIVI – TAS – LON - DON” on inner circle. Almost no interpunction, only after the king’s name, which is a double saltire. Mintmark Cross patonce / none or unsure.

Mika

 

Thanks for the comments. I really like your Henry VI coins. I have not added him to my collection...yet.

 

Thank you very much, @Orfew! I hope that you win! It will be a pleasure to see your future coin!

Your coins are very awesone too!

 

You're welcome @Orfew and thank you for the coin praise. The really interesting thing about the Edward III Esterlin is that a lot of experts doubt that it is really Anglo-Gallic, despite the legend. The style of dies, fineness of silver, and hoard evidence all point to this conclusion. I hope you like the book, I think it is one off the best medieval coin books I have.

Best of luck on the medieval gold, I hope you win it. It would make for another great post oin the forum.

 

Those are great coins, fascinating and beautifull. Here is my only Anglo-Gallic example...

 

Très jolie Aliénor! Congrats!!

 

Merci beaucoup