Saxon Coins

Early in the 5th century, when Britannia, broadly comprising what is now England and Wales, ceased to be a province of the Roman empire. The production of coinage effectively came to an end and a non-monetary economy developed. The first Anglo-Saxon coins produced in Britain were struck under Eadbald of Kent around AD 625.

These were small, gold coins, called scillingas (shillings) in surviving Anglo-Saxon law codes, although they have since been referred to as thrymsas by numismatists. As the 7th century progressed, the gold coins produced grew increasingly pale until they were replaced by small, thick, silver coins known as Sceattas around the year 675. These sceattas were also produced in England, as well as in Germanic continental areas, bearing designs which featured a wide range of iconography.

In Britain around AD 757-796 the sceattas was superseded by the silver penny, and this would remain the principal English monetary denomination until the mid-14th century.