S.857 Æthelred I (Cuthgils)

Sceat of Æthelred I, king of Northumbria 774-780 and 789-796
Moneyer: Cuthgils
Mint: York (presumably)
S. 857
Pirie unlisted
Phase Ia
Abramson 85-10
O: +ED+Γ.RED
R: +CVD CLS
Motif: 1/shrine

Cuthgils (or Cudcils?) is a rare moneyer for Æthelred I. He also coined for Ælfwald (I or II). His coins, of crude design compared with others of Æthelred's second reign, suggest these coins might be an earlier issue, but since there is no hoard evidence there is no way to know. Cuthgils' coins depict a triangular design with a cross above. This has been called a "shrine" or "church roof" though the simplicity of the design prevents further interpretation. It has been suggested that this was an ecclesiastic issue, though there is no specific indication of this.

Lord Grantley believed the reverse of the coin was a tribute to St. Cuthberht, and misinterpreted the reverse as stating "SCT CVD" There were only 2-3 known at the time, and the discovery of more specimens with clearer legends showed that the legend is clearly "CVD CLS". The final nail that put he matter to rest was the discovery of coins of Ælfwald by the same moneyer Cuthgils. These are extremely rare and do not depict a 'shrine' or other fancy design.

Whether the shrine design on otherwise featureless coins had any specific meaning, such as being struck under the auspices of a clergyman, has been lost to history. Presumably the idea for the shrine image itself was copied from contemporary Merovingian or early Carolingian coins.

The Yorkshire museum does have a Cuthgils sceat (Pirie 22) but it is from different dies. I have not been able to trace an obverse die match, but the reverse matches coin 46 on Patrick Finn's Memorial List 'A' (in "Studies in Early Medieval Coinage vol 1", T. Abramson ed). The reverse is distinct and recognizable by the presence of most of the letters in the legend being recut on the die. While this issue is not as rare as it was 100 years ago when Grantley wrote about it, it still remains quite rare. There are only 5 listed in the EMC and a handful of others in private collections.

Ex- Mike Vosper