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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;FitzNigel, post: 2468600, member: 74712&quot;]Okay, after Tintagel we drove back to England and went to Oxford to meet up with some friends.&nbsp; While there, I wanted to stop at the Ashmolean, as I had never been there (it being closed or under renovation every other time I was in Oxford).&nbsp; Primarily I wanted to see the Alfred Jewel, which was absolutely exquisite, but impossible to photograph with my phone!&nbsp; So here&#039;s the Ashmolean&#039;s photo:</p><p>[ATTACH=full]518714[/ATTACH] </p><p>This would have been used to hold a wooden or ivory &#039;pointer&#039; so a person could keep track of where he was while reading.&nbsp; It was commissioned by Alfred the Great as a part of his promoting literacy.</p><p><br /></p><p>Anyway, aside from the Alfred a Jewel, the Ashmolean has a wonderful number of coins, and even a &#039;history of money&#039; section near the gift shop.&nbsp; Unfortunately I felt a little rushed because my wife was with a friend and the didn&#039;t seem to care as much, but here are some of the finds I liked:</p><p><br /></p><p>More Celtic</p><p>[ATTACH=full]518715[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>Here is a gold Roman coin, which I wished had come out clearer.&nbsp; This was in a display in how the Romans depicted the people and places they conquered.&nbsp; This one is Germania mourning over a broken spear and it is absolutely gorgeous!</p><p>[ATTACH=full]518716[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>Some nice depictions of Alexander the Great:</p><p>[ATTACH=full]518717[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>This one is probably one of the highlights for me - they had a mold for Chinese cash, plus a coin tree from which the coins would be removed after being cast</p><p>[ATTACH=full]518720[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>Harold II who died at Hastings - hard to find these guys!</p><p>[ATTACH=full]518724[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>Another rare one - Alfred the Great!</p><p>[ATTACH=full]518725[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>The obligatory Eid Mar</p><p>[ATTACH=full]518726[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>And the Crondall hoard - there was a very nice article about these coins by Michael Shutterly in the May issue of the Numismatist</p><p>[ATTACH=full]518727[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>We had originally planned a second day in Oxford, but since we lost a day in London, we decided to go back there early.&nbsp; That was the one day we had rain!&nbsp; Luckily for me, when it was raining and we were looking for someplace indoors we were near A. H. Baldwin&#039;s!&nbsp; It was easy to convince my wife to come in then...&nbsp; Had a look through some of their medieval trays, and of course the one my wife was drawn to was £700...&nbsp; There was a nice French coin I was considering at £180, but even with the favorable exchange rate, I did not feel comfortable spending that much (in front of my wife...) after having spent so much in the vacation itself.&nbsp; Still, well worth it, and had a great time![/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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