Edward the Elder Penny, Two line type, Willaf, ex Tooze and English Doctor

Edward the Elder (899-924), silver Penny, two-line type, Moneyer Willaf, small cross pattée, Latin legend and linear circles surrounding, +EADVVEARD REX, rev. three cross pattées across centre, pellet before right cross, triangle of pellets at top and bottom, Moneyer name in two lines, VVIL / LVF M, weight 1.60g (cf. BMC II, 60-65; CTCE 293; N.649; S.1087). Toned and boldly struck with robust engraving, slight die clash evident by inner circle on obverse, good very fine.

The Coinage of Tenth Century England by Blunt, Stewart and Lyon gives this coin as Horizontal type I from the Mercian North-East perhaps Stamford and lists Willaf as number 293.

Edward the Elder born circa 871 was the elder of the sons of Alfred the Great and was already in charge of part of the army by the age of 21, and probably acted as his Father's deputy in continued skirmishes as late as 896 and was the natural choice to succeed him in 899 as full Ruler of Wessex and Mercia. From 917 a further annexation program commenced as Edward started to take over the "Five Boroughs" of the Danelaw and East Anglia. He then remained unchallenged of an enlarged England until his death on 17th July 924 aged around 53, leaving a large family of at least ten daughters and five sons by three wives.

The obverse legend translates as "Edward King" and the reverse "Willaf moneyer".

Provenance:

Ex Dix Noonan and Webb, Auction 140, 15^th March 2017, lot 242.

Ex Dr John Tooze Collection, Dix Noonan and Webb, Auction 163, 19^th September 2019, lot 1014.

Ex Collection of an English Doctor, part one, Sovereign Rarities, London, March 2022.