This Norman penny was minted between 1083 and 1087 during the reign of William I. The coin face shows William with his sceptre and crown. The reverse tells us where the coin was minted, the moneyer was Siferth at Lincoln. It also bears the inscription PAXS, meaning peace, around a short cross.
Coins of Edward the Confessor and Harold II also show the PAX peace inscription.
This rare coin was found in 1883 under the pews at St.Mary's Church in Bexley, Kent. Bexley's Victorian parishioners were carrying out alterations to the early 12th century church which is mentioned in the Domesday Book. The coin was later transferred to the Bexley Museum Collection in 1973 as a gift from the Parish of St.Mary's. It is now displayed in the museum galleries at Hall Place & Gardens in Bexley.
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