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Silver 1/2 Unit Corn of Ear Quatrefoil
| Issuer | Iceni tribe (Celtic Britain) |
|---|---|
| Year | 15 BC - 20 AD |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 0.5 g |
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| Obverse description | A prominent concentric ring motif occupies the centre of the flan, enclosing a central pellet and surrounded by a raised annular band, evoking a wheel or solar symbol characteristic of Icenic Celtic coinage. Radiating from this central device are four petal-like elements arranged in a quatrefoil pattern, two of which incorporate abbreviated corn-ear motifs rendered in stylised relief. Additional abstract Celtic ornamental motifs, including pellets and curved linear elements, fill the surrounding field. The design is executed in the abstract La Tène decorative tradition, with no inscriptions or legends. The flan is irregular and slightly scyphate in profile, consistent with the hammered coinage of Iron Age Britain. |
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| Reverse description | A stylised horse progressing to the left dominates the field, rendered in the abstract Celtic manner typical of Icenic coinage of the late Iron Age. The head is depicted as a solid, compact mass, with short diagonal dash elements representing the mane above the neck and body. A triad of pellets is positioned above the horse's back, and a single pellet appears below the body, in the lower field. The legs are schematically rendered with globular terminals at the hooves. No inscription or legend is present; the design relies entirely on abstract geometric and zoomorphic vocabulary characteristic of the Iceni tribal coinage tradition. |
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| Additional information |
The Iceni occupied what is now Norfolk and northern Suffolk, and their silver fractional coinage — struck in the decades bracketing the turn of the millennium — reflects a tribe that retained meaningful autonomy until Boudicca's revolt of 60–61 AD collapsed it entirely. At roughly half a gram, these pieces circulated as genuine small change rather than prestige objects, handling transactions the larger units were too valuable for. The corn-ear motif connects to a wider regional tradition of agricultural imagery on late Iron Age British coinage, likely tied to local identity rather than any centralized political program.