Silver Plated Unit Cotswold Crosses / Catti Head Type Contemporary Counterfeit

Contemporary counterfeits of Dobunnic coinage were not clandestine operations in any modern sense — base-metal plated pieces circulated alongside official issues and were likely tolerated, or even produced, within the tribal economy. The Cotswold Crosses / Catti Head series dates to the final decade before the Claudian invasion of 43 AD, a period when Dobunnic political authority was fracturing under pressure from the expanding Catuvellauni. Some northern Dobunnic leaders had already submitted to Catuvellauni dominance before Roman boots touched British soil.

The plating on survivors is typically thin and frequently flaked, exposing the bronze core — which is precisely how most are identified in the hand rather than by weight alone.