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Auction: 318 - The Collector's Series
Lot: 1002

England. Kings of East Anglia. Beonna (749-760 or later). Silver 'Interlace' Sceat or Transitional Penny. 1.11 gms. BEONNA in runic letters around central pellet, rev. Interlaced quatrefoil with central pellet, and line of three pellets in each angle. N.430/1, S.945B. There are very few primary sources for Beonna and these consist of just bare-bone references to his reign penned by later chroniclers. His coins have largely provided scholars the only tangible evidence of Beonna as a historical figure. Most of the hundred-odd Beonna coins known are moneyer issues, citing Werferth, Efe or Wilred, and are proper Sceattas. The somewhat larger module of this type though and its slightly greater weight suggests that it should be more accurately deemed a Transitional Penny. Spink specialist Patrick Finn purchased this coin in 1988 as a single-find piece from the finder after Treasure Trove law examination by the British authorities. A decade later, it was traded for a Triple Unit. It should be considered the first silver Penny of East Anglia. Slight trace of porosity on obverse. Pleasing light slate gray. Bold, well-defined strike and excellent metal quality. Of major import in the Anglo-Saxon series and Extraordinarly Rare with less than a handful known and this piece believed to be the only example in private hands. NGC AU 55.
Ex 'The Millennia Collection', Ira & Larry Goldberg, Beverly Hills, CA, May 26, 2008, lot 195; ex Dr. Jacob Y. Terner Collection.

Sold for
$16,000