Dr Murray Andrews

Archaeological Numismatist

Tag: medieval (Page 1 of 2)

Get into the groove: two new publications for April 2022

15 April 2022 /

The Spring 2022 issue of the Worcestershire Recorder has just hit the shelves, and contains a whole host of fascinating articles on archaeology and history in the county. It’s also got two little articles by me – both on radically different topics!

The first article is a co-authored piece with Richard Lloyd from the University of Worcester, and discusses our recent research into the mysterious ‘groove marks’ that cover large swathes of the church of St John in Bedwardine, Worcester. Drawing on the work of James Wright, we reject the claim that these are ‘arrow marks’ from medieval archers, and instead suggest that they reflect the removal of ‘holy dust’ for use in medieval and early modern folk remedies.

Groove marks at St John in Bedwardine (© Murray Andrews)

The second article discusses a small group of clay tobacco pipes from Astley that had been donated to the North Worcestershire Archaeology Group. The assemblage spans the 17th to 19th centuries, and offers a snapshot of the shifting market for tobacco in post-medieval and modern Worcestershire.

So why not have a look? To purchase a copy, get in touch with the Worcestershire Archaeological Society.

For a full list of my publications to date, check out the ‘Publications’ page on this website.

A haul of hoards: new publications for March 2022

11 March 2022 /

Members of the British Numismatic Society will have by now received copies of the 2021 edition of the British Numismatic Journal, which features three new articles I’ve written on medieval and early modern coin hoards.

‘Three Tudor hoards containing continental gold coins’, British Numismatic Journal, 91 (2021), 115-125.

The first article discusses three previously-unrecorded coin hoards from Tudor England. Notably, each hoard contains gold coins struck in continental Europe, a fascinating phenomenon most recently discussed by Richard Kelleher. Aside from their numismatic interest, the hoards have some interesting archaeological and historical associations: one find from the River Thames near Lambeth Palace was probably lost by a traveller taking the famous Horseferry to Westminster, while the likely owners of the two hoards from Southampton and Pendock can be traced in historical records.

View across the River Thames towards Lambeth Palace (Image © Tagishsimon for Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0)

The two other articles also record coin hoards. On describes an 1859 discovery of coins of Henry I and Stephen hidden at Dalton-in-Furness during the twelfth-century ‘Anarchy’, while the other gives summary listings of 47 medieval and post-medieval coin hoards reported under the Treasure Act 1996 by December 2020.

All in all, plenty of material to whet your numismatic whistle! To purchase a copy, get in touch with the BNS via their website.

For a full list of my publications to date, check out the ‘Publications’ page on this website.

Cash in the attic: new publication for May 2021

4 May 2021 /

New article alert!

The Cercle d’Études Numismatiques have just published the 2020 volume of the Journal of Archaeological Numismatics (JAN). This year’s offering is a special issue on the ‘Archaeology of Monetary Deposits’, and has a fantastic selection of papers on coin hoards across space and time: from Ireland to Italy, and from antiquity to World War 2!

My article explores late medieval coin hoarding in domestic contexts, using Britain and Ireland as a case study. Taking in evidence from nearly 200 hoards, the article uses a range of statistical techniques to explore how and why medieval hoarders hid their money at home. Like all JAN articles, it’s lavishly illustrated with colour maps and graphs – and, as an added bonus, there is a full gazetteer providing a point-of-entry to the hoards themselves.

So why not have a read? To purchase a copy, get in touch with the editor via the CEN website.

For a full list of my publications to date, check out the ‘Publications’ page on this website.

BNS/RNS conference 2021: registration now open!

3 May 2021 /

On 10 July 2021 the British Numismatic Society and Royal Numismatic Society will host their annual joint conference, to be held in person at the Ashmolean Museum and online via Zoom. This year’s conference tackles an appropriate theme on the fiftieth anniversary of UK decimalisation: the reform of currency systems, past and present.

There’s an impressively broad range of papers, covering coin reforms from antiquity to the present day. I’ll be speaking in the afternoon session about the reform that killed the medieval English currency: the Tudor Great Debasement. The talk will include new insights from projects that I’m currently working  on, including a synthesis of Tudor coin hoards from England and Wales, and of course the Sylloge of Coins of the British Isles volume on Chris Comber’s magnificent collection of Tudor coins.

‘Old Coppernose’: silver coinage during the Tudor Great Debasement
(Image: © The Portable Antiquities Scheme, CC BY 2.0)

Registration is now open, with in-person tickets costing £30 and online tickets costing £10. If you’re a student, online tickets are free! So why not book today – just follow the instructions on the Eventbrite page.

New review of medieval coin hoard book!

26 February 2021 /

The latest volume of the Numismatic Chronicle features a review of my recent book, Coin Hoarding in Medieval England and Wales, c.973-1544 , by Dr Barrie Cook, Curator of Medieval and Early Modern Coins at the British Museum.

medieval coin hoard book

The review gives a wonderful summary of the key themes in the book, which is generously described as ‘an ambitious analysis of medieval coin hoards from England and Wales, addressing the fundamental questions of what are hoards and how and why are they deposited – and indeed how and why are they recovered…it is unparalleled and wholly welcome’.

So why not have a read yourself? To purchase a copy, head on over to the BAR website.

London’s oldest medieval coin? New publication for November 2020

16 November 2020 /

Another new article for you!

The 2019 Transactions of the London and Middlesex Archaeological Society have just been released. This year’s offering is a treasure-trove of London archaeology, presenting new results from the Roman cemetery at Harper Road, Southwark, re-analysis of building stone from the Tower of London, and major new evidence for Lundenwic’s Middle Saxon waterfront from the Adelphi Building, Westminster.

This last article, authored by PCA’s excellent Dougie Killock, includes my report on the coins from the site. Remarkably, these include what may well be London’s earliest medieval coin: a mid-7th century pale gold shilling (‘thrymsa’) from a secure waterfront context. A gem of a coin from a gem of a site – no wonder the editors chose it as the cover image!

Why not have a read? To purchase a copy, get in touch with the Society via their website.

For a full list of my publications to date, check out the ‘Publications’ page on this website: here.

Coin hoarding in medieval Europe: new video!

18 September 2020 /

As part of Coin Collecting Magazine’s virtual Festival of Coins (September to October 2020), I recently made a short video exploring the reasons behind the assembly and deposition of coin hoards in the middle ages. It’s now available online in full, so if you’ve got some time to spare, why not check it out? Click this link to view.

coin hoard
Coin hoard from Ryther (North Yorkshire), c. 1487 (Image courtesy of York Museums Trust :: https://yorkmuseumstrust.org.uk :: CC BY-SA 4.0)

Festival participants can also now claim an exclusive 30% discount on my book, Coin hoarding in medieval England and Wales, c.973-1544, courtesy of the good folks at BAR Publishing. To find out more about this offer, click here.

New publications – September 2020

6 September 2020 /

New publications alert!

I have two articles in the 2020 British Numismatic Journal, the annual journal of the British Numismatic Society. The first article discusses three late medieval and Tudor hoards from Greater London. The second, co-written with Eleanor Ghey from the British Museum, gives a round-up of recent coin hoards reported under the Treasure Act and Treasure Trove laws. Why not check them out? To purchase a copy, get in touch with the Society via their website.

For a full list of my publications to date, check out the ‘Publications’ page on this website: here.

Medieval mints of Britain, Ireland, and the Isle of Man

20 July 2020 /

Another bit of numismatic data viz! This map illustrates the changing geography of minting in Britain, Ireland, and the Isle of Man c.973-1544.

The geography of minting in Britain, Ireland, and the Isle of Man, c.973-1544

The data used in this graphic comes from two key sources: Martin Allen’s excellent Mints and money in medieval England, and Philip Skingley’s edited volume on Coins of Scotland, Ireland, and the Islands.  Both books are available from all good retailers!

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