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Late 16th century hoard found in Cheshire
Colin Bailey of the Stockport Prospectors Club recently
uncovered a hoard of 29 shillings and three groats whilst detecting in a field
in Cheshire in the autumn of 2000. Colin was with a group of friends from the
Vale Royal Club when he found a shilling of Elizabeth 1st. Virtually a step or
two away he found another, then another. With the help of friend Rick, Nigel
Townley and the farmer the group finally unearthed a total of 28 shillings and
two groats of Elizabeth I, one groat of Mary 1 and one shilling of Philip and
Mary.
The British Museum report reads, "The coins are all
official English silver coins of the later 16th century, and as such will be of
the traditional sterling standard, 92.5% fine metal. Just two denominations are
present, 29 shillings (effectively the highest value silver coin available) plus
three groats (the fourpenny coin), which would appear to indicate a considerable
degree of selection. The presence of coins of Mary is normal for later 16th
& 17th cry coin finds: in 1560 Elizabeth recalled all the old money of the
Great Debasement produced under Henry VIII and Edward VI, replacing it with a
revived sterling silver coinage of her own, but Mary's good silver issues could
and did survive this recoinage.
The absence of any coins dateable to the period 1561-82 is the
result of the denomination selection, as no shillings or groats were produced in
these years, the mint instead producing great quantities of sixpences and
threepences. If the find is categorised as essentially a group of shillings, the
coins present fairly reflect the relative outputs of this denomination
throughout Elizabeth's reign. The face value of the group was the round figure
of thirty shillings, a sum equivalent in modern terms to something like £200.
The latest coin present dates to 1601-2. There would be one further issue of
shillings under Elizabeth, dating to 1602-3. The absence from the find of this
issue, and of the early issues of James I (which are not rare), make it likely
that the group was deposited around 1603-4, possibly even at the time of the
queen's death.
The coins are of good silver, represent a reasonable sum of
money, would have been in circulation together, and show a degree of selection.
Taken together, these factors strongly indicate that the coins were deposited on
one occasion." The BM suggest that the find fulfills the criteria of
Treasure.
Colin informs us that the Salt Museum, Northwich are interested
in obtaining the find. We will keep you informed of further progress.
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