Contemporary counterfeits of Iceni unit coinage are not crude forgeries in the modern sense — they circulated alongside official issues, likely accepted at face value, and were produced by smiths who understood the metallurgy well enough to apply a convincing silver wash over a bronze core. Detection required physical wear or damage. Many were never caught.
The Van Arsdell 732 series dates to the final decades before the Roman conquest of 43 AD, a period when Iceni tribal authority was already fracturing under client-king arrangements with Rome. Whether these plated pieces represent private opportunism or sanctioned emergency production remains unresolved.
Contemporary counterfeits of Iceni unit coinage are not crude forgeries in the modern sense — they circulated alongside official issues, likely accepted at face value, and were produced by smiths who understood the metallurgy well enough to apply a convincing silver wash over a bronze core. Detection required physical wear or damage. Many were never caught.
The Van Arsdell 732 series dates to the final decades before the Roman conquest of 43 AD, a period when Iceni tribal authority was already fracturing under client-king arrangements with Rome. Whether these plated pieces represent private opportunism or sanctioned emergency production remains unresolved.