Catalog
Thrymsa 'Wuneetton' type
| Issuer | Early Anglo-Saxon |
|---|---|
| Year | 620-655 |
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| Shape | Round (irregular) |
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| Obverse description | Stylized bust facing right in the Roman imperial tradition, rendered in a distinctly Anglo-Saxon manner with bold, somewhat abstract linear engraving. The figure displays a radiate or crested helmet with pronounced ridged lines emanating from the crown, and a draped shoulder visible below. A small cross appears before the face in the field to the right of the bust. The entire design is enclosed within a beaded border, characteristic of early Anglo-Saxon gold coinage of the primary phase. |
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| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Additional information |
Thrymsas occupy the earliest stratum of Anglo-Saxon coinage, derived directly from Merovingian tremissis prototypes flooding into England through Kentish and East Anglian trade networks in the early seventh century. The 'Wuneetton' type takes its name from a runic inscription whose reading and meaning remain disputed — it may denote a moneyer, a place, or something else entirely, and no scholarly consensus has held for long. These were prestige objects as much as coins, circulating among an elite that measured wealth in cattle and land rather than pocket change.