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Bronze Unit - Cunobelin Cunobelinus Jupiter Lion
| Issuer | Catuvellauni and Trinovantes tribes (Celtic Britain) |
|---|---|
| Year | 20-43 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 2.3 g |
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| Obverse description | Bare head of Jupiter facing right, rendered in a bold Celtic interpretation of classical style, with curling hair and beard indicated by stylised scrollwork and pellet ornaments filling the field. The portrait is executed in low relief with pronounced celticised features characteristic of Cunobelinian bronze coinage. The abbreviated legend CVNO appears to the right of the head, identifying the issuing king Cunobelin. The overall treatment reflects Mediterranean iconographic influence filtered through indigenous British artistic tradition. |
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| Reverse description | A lion passant or springing to the right, depicted in a vigorous Celtic style with exaggerated musculature, open jaws, and a flowing tail curling above the body. The animal is rendered with bold linear detailing typical of late British Iron Age bronze coinage under Cunobelin. Below the lion, a ground line separates the main field from the exergue, within which the mint abbreviation CAM is inscribed in clear Latin capitals, denoting Camulodunum (modern Colchester). The composition reflects a classical lion type adapted through Gaulish and British numismatic traditions. |
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| Additional information |
Cunobelin ruled the Catuvellauni and Trinovantes from Camulodunum — modern Colchester — for roughly four decades, the longest reign of any recorded pre-Roman British king. His kingdom controlled the Thames estuary and much of the southeast, making him the dominant political force in Britain before the Claudian invasion of 43 AD. Shakespeare later borrowed the name for Cymbeline, though the play bears little resemblance to anything historical.
Bronze issues like this circulated in the final years before Roman conquest rendered native coinage obsolete almost overnight.