The "Watford" type takes its collector name from a significant hoard found in Hertfordshire, though Stephen's cross moline pennies were struck at mints across England during the civil war period known as the Anarchy — the prolonged contest between Stephen and Empress Matilda that fractured royal authority and left mint supervision dangerously inconsistent. That breakdown is directly readable in the coinage: die-cutting quality varies enormously across issuing mints, and many examples show irregular flans that reflect disrupted silver supplies rather than careless workmanship.
The "Watford" type takes its collector name from a significant hoard found in Hertfordshire, though Stephen's cross moline pennies were struck at mints across England during the civil war period known as the Anarchy — the prolonged contest between Stephen and Empress Matilda that fractured royal authority and left mint supervision dangerously inconsistent. That breakdown is directly readable in the coinage: die-cutting quality varies enormously across issuing mints, and many examples show irregular flans that reflect disrupted silver supplies rather than careless workmanship.