A resource for collectors, metal-detectorists and students
Richard II Pennies
Coins Struck from Local Dies
This section deals with the classification of coins struck at York with locally made dies. For the classification of coins struck with dies made at London, select Classification from the menu bar above. It should be noted that mules exist with their obverse from a London-made die and their reverse from a locally made die, or vice versa. For further information regarding mules, see the section entitled Identification Aids.
Some of the coin types that follow are illustrated by a single image; others are illustrated by two or more images within a sliding gallery. In the latter case, the additional images may be accessed by clicking on the navigation arrows which appear when the mouse-pointer is hovered over the initially displayed image. All images can be clicked to provide an enlarged view.
York, Local Dies
Group A (1377-1399) - Spink 1692; North 1330 (a)
Group A coins are fairly faithful copies of those struck from dies made at London, and their obverse legend is of a regular form. They are, therefore, the most likely of the coins from local dies to be mistaken for their their London-die counterparts. Purvey identifies six obverse dies of this group, all of which have a cross on the breast and pellets by the shoulders. Reverses may have pellets in the legend and/or a saltire before CIVI.
Obv. legend: RICARDVS REX ANGLIE
Rev. legend: CIVI TAS EBO RACI
Group B (1377-1399) - Spink 1692; North 1330 (b)
Group B coins are generally of poorer style than those of Group A, but they are most readily identifiable by the unique form of their obverse legend. Purvey identifies four obverse dies of this group, all of which have a cross on the breast and pellets by the shoulders. Reverses may have pellets in the legend and/or a saltire before CIVI.
Obv. legend: RICARDVS REX ANGLE
Rev. legend: CIVI TAS EBO RACI
Group C (1377-1399) - Spink 1692; North 1330 (c)
Group C coins are of coarse style, but the coins are most readily identifiable by the unique form of their obverse legend. Purvey identifies five obverse dies of this group, all of which have a cross on the breast and pellets by the shoulders. Reverses may have pellets in the legend and/or a saltire before CIVI. The letter E, or both E and B, of EBO are often retrograde.
Obv. legend: RICARDVS REX ANGILE
Rev. legend: CIVI TAS EBO RACI
Group D (1377-1399) - Spink 1692; North 1330 (d)
Group D coins are readily identifiable by the unique form of their obverse legend. Purvey identifies just one obverse die for this group (images 1 & 2), but two coins from a second die are recorded here (images 3 & 4). Coins from both dies have a saltire on the breast and pellets by the shoulders. The reverse of the first type has a saltire before CIVI; the reverse of the second has a pellet before CIVI and retrograde E and B in EBO.
Obv. legend: RICARDVS REX ANGILIE
Rev. legend: CIVI TAS EBO RACI
Group E (1377-1399) - Spink 1694; North 1330 (e)
Group E coins are readily identifiable by the unique form of their obverse legend. Purvey identifies two obverse dies for coins of this group, both of which have a saltire on the breast and pellets by the shoulders. The reverse of the first type has a saltire before CIVI; the reverse of the second type has no mark before CIVI.
Obv. legend: RICARDVS REX ANG[L] FRAN
Rev. legend: CIVI TAS EBO RACI
Group F (1377-1399) - Spink 1693; North 1330 (f)
Group F coins are readily identifiable by the unique form of their obverse legend. Purvey identifies two obverse dies for coins of this group, the first of which has double-pellet stops between the words, and the second has none. There would seem to be at least two local reverse dies associated with obverse die 1, as Purvey's reverse has a saltire before CIVI, whereas the present coin doesn't. See Group F Note below for further details.
Obv. legend: RICARD REX ANGL DNS EB
Rev. legend: CIVI TAS EBO RACI
General Note
The gallery image numbers above correspond to Purvey's obverse die numbers thus:
Group A gallery img. 1 = Purvey die 4
Group A gallery img. 2 = Purvey die 3
Group A gallery img. 3 = Purvey die 3
Group B gallery img. 1 = Purvey die 4
Group C gallery img. 1 = Purvey die 5
Group D gallery img. 1 = Purvey die 1
Group D gallery img. 2 = Purvey die 1
Group D gallery img. 3 = Die unlisted by Purvey, designated die 2
Group D gallery img. 4 = Die unlisted by Purvey, designated die 2
Group E gallery img. 1 = Purvey die 1
Group F gallery img. 1 = Purvey die 1
Group F Note
Purvey was not able to illustrate a 'true' coin of Group F from either die 1 or die 2 in his 1962 BNJ paper. However, he was able to illustrate the obverses of both, and the associated reverse of one, by using 'mules' struck from a Group F die on one side, and a London-made die on the other. The Group F, die 1 obverse is illustrated by two coins, one having a London-made reverse of Type II (BNJ Plate VII, No. 34), and the other a London-made reverse of Type III (BNJ Plate VIII, No. 65). The local reverse associated with Group F, die 1 is illustrated by a coin having a London-made Type IIIa obverse (BNJ Plate VIII, No. 69). The obverse of Group F, die 2 is illustrated by a coin having a London-made reverse of Type II (BNJ Plate VII, No. 35). Details of the local reverse associated with Group F, die 2 are uncertain, as no true coin is known.
Purvey notes that a true Group F, die 1 coin, originally in the Lockett collection, '... is unique in being the only 'true' DNS EB coin known (i.e. local obverse and reverse)'. The coin here illustrated as Group F, gallery image 1, is a second true coin with a Purvey die 1 obverse combined with a local die reverse. However, this reverse differs from the one Purvey illustrates in that it has no saltire before CIVI. It would seem, therefore, that at least two local reverses are associated with the Group F, die 1 obverse, and that the present coin may also be unique.