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| O: Diademed bust right, with cross in front | R: Coiled wolf with curled tongue facing right |
| Silver sceat of series K, London (?),c. 710-20. | |
Asceat orsceatta (/ʃæt/SHAT;Old English:sceatt[ʃæɑt],pl.sceattas) was a small, thicksilvercoin minted inEngland,Frisia, andJutland during theAnglo-Saxon period that normally weighed 0.8–1.3 grams (about1⁄30 troy ounce). It is now (as of 2024) more commonly known in England as an 'early penny'.[1]
Its name derives fromOld Englishsceatt, meaning "wealth", "money", and "coin", which has been applied to these coins since the 17th century based on interpretations of the legal codes ofMercia and ofKent under itskingÆthelberht.[2] It is likely, however, that the coins were more often known to contemporaries as "pennies" (Old English:peningas), much liketheir successor silver coins. They are very diverse, organised into over a hundred numbered types derived from the British Museum Catalogue of the 1890s and by broader alphabetical classifications laid out by British numismatist Stuart Rigold in the 1970s.[3]
The huge volume of finds made in the last thirty years usingmetal detectors has radically altered understanding of this coinage and, while it is now clear that these coins were in everyday use across eastern and southern England in the early 8th century, it is also apparent that the current organisation is in considerable need of adjustment.
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| O: +ALDFRIDVS around central annulet. | R: Left-facing quadruped. |
| Silver sceat ofAldfrith of Northumbria, 685-704. | |
Sceattas rarely carry legends of any kind, though a small number do name the mint ofLondon and others carry shortrunic legends such as 'Aethiliraed' and 'Efe', which probably refer tomoneyers rather than kings.
Although sceattas present many problems of organisation, attribution, and dating, they also carry a variety of designs bespeaking extensiveCeltic,classical, andGermanic influences. These designs include human figures, animals, birds, crosses, plants, and monsters, all of which have been elucidated by Anna Gannon.[4] Tony Abramson has published an illustrated guide for nonexperts.[5] One series (U), has been linked toKingAethelbald ofMercia (716-57) on the basis of its iconography, though this attribution is tenuous and recent research suggests it is very unlikely.[citation needed] It has also been suggested on the basis of the iconography of certain sceattas that they were issued by ecclesiastical authorities, such as bishops or abbots. Minting may not have been a strictly urban or secular prerogative, and coins were used for many payments and purposes beyond pure commercial buying and selling.
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| O: Facing bust with beard and cross on either side. | R: Right-facing curled 'dragon'. |
| Silver sceat of series X,Ribe,Denmark,c. 710-20. | |
Associating sceattas with particular mints or kingdoms is very difficult and must be based primarily upon study of find-spots. Most have been found usingmetal detectors since the 1970s. In this way, it has been possible to attribute some types with considerable confidence, such as series H withWessex (and in particularSouthampton) and series S withEssex.[citation needed] In Denmark, series X has been plausibly associated with the early trading center atRibe.[6]
The chronology of the sceattas is also very hard to unravel. Some of the earliest series use the same designs as the pale goldthrymsas (similar to the continentalLatin:tremissis; notionally one-third of a pure goldsolidus) and, by analogy with coins from the better-understoodFrankish material, can be dated to the 680s. It is known that sceattas were minted in theFrisian town ofDorestad (just south ofUtrecht in the Netherlands); they were a commonly circulating currency in the Frankish realm until themonetary reform ofPepin the Short instituted at Ver in 755.[7]
The thirty or forty years after 680 saw the production and circulation of the "primary series" of sceattas, which were generally of good metal quality and weight(c. 1–1.3 grams). They were largely minted inKent and theThames Estuary, though a few were produced inNorthumbria bearing the name ofKingAldfrith(r. 685–704). The "secondary series", struck fromc. 710 toc. 750, saw a massive expansion of minting all over southern and easternEngland to every majorAnglo-Saxon kingdom. One or more types can be attributed with more or less confidence toWessex,Mercia,Sussex,Essex,Kent,Northumbria, andEast Anglia.
There was much copying anddebasement, and weight could fluctuate considerably(c. 0.8–1.3 grams). There are relatively few hoards from this period with which to construct even a relative chronology, and any new discovery could radically alter current scholarly understanding. The end of the sceattas is especially difficult to pinpoint, and it is likely that there was a period of some decades in the middle of the 8th century when very few if any coins were produced inEngland.
![Series E, Kloster Barthe variety (Frisia)[8]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aFrisia_sceatta_715_701246.jpg)
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