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Silver Unit - East Wiltshire Helmet Lyre
| Issuer | Dobunni tribe (Celtic Britain) |
|---|---|
| Year | 15 BC - 30 AD |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 1.1 g |
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| Obverse description | Stylised helmeted head facing left, rendered in the distinctive late Iron Age Celtic artistic tradition. The helmet is indicated by incised lines across the crown, while the facial features are abstracted into bold curvilinear forms. Pellets and sinuous scroll-like ornaments fill the field around the head, characteristic of Dobunnic artistic conventions. No legend or inscription present. |
|---|---|
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| Mintage | ND (15 BC - 30 AD) |
| Additional information |
The Dobunni occupied a territory centered on what is now Gloucestershire, and unlike many of their Iron Age neighbors, they were among the relatively few British tribes to mint coinage bearing named rulers — a practice that helps archaeologists sequence their issues with unusual precision. The "Helmet Lyre" type sits in the uninscribed phase, predating that practice, which places it among the earlier productions of the tribal mint.
Finds cluster heavily in the Cotswolds and upper Thames valley, consistent with Dobunni core territory rather than trade dispersal.