Edward Defaced

Penny of Edward I, class 10ab, AD1300-1305 (PUBLIC-1F8F45). Copyright: Roger Thomas, License CC-BY.

With Hallowe’en just around the corner I thought it would be an appropriate time to share this spooky-looking coin. Someone has literally ‘punched out the lights’ on the kings face of this medieval coin, and made such a thorough job that they’ve managed to add two extra pellets on the reverse. There are many other instances of defaced English coins on the database, usually of monarchs who were unpopular because of religious reasons, like Edward VI, Mary & Charles I, but Edward I doesn’t appear to have been a regular victim of numismoclasm – so perhaps the ‘Hammer of the Scots’ was hammered by a Scotsman?

See you Jimmy – stitch that!