Noonans Mayfair
Auction 351 3 Mar 2026
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Early Medieval English Coins from the Collection of William MacKay
Kings of Wessex, Alfred the Great, Third Coinage, Penny of the London Monogram type, struck by an anonymous moneyer, draped and diademed bust right, the tunic divided into five panels, ælf-red rex around, rev. letters of Londonia formed into a monogram, cross above and below, 1.56g/6h (MacKay A4(ii) 13.2, this coin; BMC 94; N 644; S 1061). Good very fine, superb portrait, full broad flan; a handsome example of this rare and iconic type £6,000-£8,000
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Provenance: L.V. Larsen Collection, Glendining Auction, 11 January 1972, lot 16; SNC April 1983 (1831); J.P. Storer Collection, Spink Auction 111, 21 November 1995; bt 1996
That the London Monogram coinage of Alfred was of some special significance is made quite clear not only by its fineness of style but also the absence of a moneyer's name from the majority of specimens. Such an omission was remarkable in this period, and typically indicates production under either direct royal or ecclesiastical authority.
The introduction of the London Monogram issues is best placed to c. 880 (Blackburn, KCA, p.121). The type does not celebrate Alfred's famous occupation of London, in 886 as was once thought; rather it demonstrates that the city was in English hands during the early 880s. Given the early dating of the issue, it probably reflects an official recognition of Alfred as overlord immediately following the demise of Ceolwulf II.
And what then should we make of Alfred's belated entrance into London in 886? Literary sources make clear that the episode was not a peacefully one; according to Æthelweard the city was 'besieged' by Alfred, whilst Asser notes a 'massacre of peoples'. The identity of Alfred's adversaries is not made clear and there is no overt reference to the Danes having captured London during the 880s. Perhaps the campaign of 886 was directed against English Mercians who had rejected Alfred's overlordship. Such a reading might explain why the English people are described as 'submitting' to Alfred in the Chronicle and the mention of a 'savage internal war' in Æthelweard's account of the events.
Kings of Wessex, Alfred the Great, Third Coinage, Penny of the London Monogram type, struck by an anonymous moneyer, draped and diademed bust right, the tunic divided into five panels, ælf-red rex around, rev. letters of Londonia formed into a monogram, cross above and below, 1.56g/6h (MacKay A4(ii) 13.2, this coin; BMC 94; N 644; S 1061). Good very fine, superb portrait, full broad flan; a handsome example of this rare and iconic type £6,000-£8,000
---
Provenance: L.V. Larsen Collection, Glendining Auction, 11 January 1972, lot 16; SNC April 1983 (1831); J.P. Storer Collection, Spink Auction 111, 21 November 1995; bt 1996
That the London Monogram coinage of Alfred was of some special significance is made quite clear not only by its fineness of style but also the absence of a moneyer's name from the majority of specimens. Such an omission was remarkable in this period, and typically indicates production under either direct royal or ecclesiastical authority.
The introduction of the London Monogram issues is best placed to c. 880 (Blackburn, KCA, p.121). The type does not celebrate Alfred's famous occupation of London, in 886 as was once thought; rather it demonstrates that the city was in English hands during the early 880s. Given the early dating of the issue, it probably reflects an official recognition of Alfred as overlord immediately following the demise of Ceolwulf II.
And what then should we make of Alfred's belated entrance into London in 886? Literary sources make clear that the episode was not a peacefully one; according to Æthelweard the city was 'besieged' by Alfred, whilst Asser notes a 'massacre of peoples'. The identity of Alfred's adversaries is not made clear and there is no overt reference to the Danes having captured London during the 880s. Perhaps the campaign of 886 was directed against English Mercians who had rejected Alfred's overlordship. Such a reading might explain why the English people are described as 'submitting' to Alfred in the Chronicle and the mention of a 'savage internal war' in Æthelweard's account of the events.