Penny - Eric Blood-Axe 1st reign

Eric Haraldsson — "Blood-Axe" — ruled York twice, expelled between reigns by the Northumbrians who preferred Olaf Sihtricsson, before being killed at Stainmore in 954 during his second expulsion. His first reign lasted barely a year. The coinage produced under it is accordingly rare, and what survives tends to come from hoards rather than extended circulation, which explains why decent surfaces are not unusual on found examples.

The epithet "Blood-Axe" derives from Norwegian saga tradition, specifically his killing of several brothers to consolidate Harald Fairhair's succession — a detail that made him unwelcome in Norway long before Northumbria tired of him.