The Posthumous Coinage of Henry III

Bury St Edmunds

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   Useful References:

• David Palmer’s Website for the St Edmundsbury Mint (Link)
• Robin Eaglen, 2006, The Abbey and Mint of Bury St Edmunds to 1279

The posthumous coinage commences sometime during the 5h period. Whereas Class 5i and 7 coins are very rare, the coins of Class 6 are extremely common owing to the large number found in the Colchester II hoard described below.

Class 5i, obverse,  John de Bernedisse, type Eaglen 3c, image courtesy of David Palmer

Bury Class 6

• Rare until the discovery of the second Colchester hoard in 1969. 
• Two coin hoards and an empty container of a possible third hoard were found within a 20 m² area along High Street in Colchester, Essex between 1902 and 2000.
• The first hoard (Colchester 1) was discovered at 25 High Street in 1902. It consisted of 11,000-12,000 English silver short cross pennies as well as contemporary Scottish and Irish issues, all buried in a lead vessel; the closing date was c.1237.
• The second hoard (Colchester 2) was discovered within the same house plot in 1969. It consisted of 14,065 silver pennies buried in a lidded lead canister, mainly of the English voided long cross type alongside contemporary Scottish and Irish issues. The majority of the coins were struck before 1256, with a late top-up of 1,916 class 6 pennies from the Bury mint.
• The Colchester hoards may have been the property of a Jewish money-lender.
• The topping up and sealing of the hoard may have been in response to The Statute of the Jewry issued by Edward I, which marked a turning point in the treatment of England’s Jewish population, including the banning of usury. The Statute dates to October 1275.
• This would date Bury class 6 coins as being minted no later than Oct. 1275. In fact, class 6x and 6 were probably produced from at earliest 4Q74 up to 3Q75.

• Class 7 Bury coins are known from two moneyers, John “ION” and Joceus “IOCE”.
• Both moneyers were known in class 7 by two sets of dies at the time Eaglen published his study of the Bury mint in 2006. Since then, more coins have turned up, and additional dies are now known.
• John de Bernedisse (“ION”) class 7: Four known full examples of his class 7 pennies : two being in the British Museum and two in private collections, and also one cut half in private ownership.   Three obverse and three reverse dies known.
• Bury Coins of Joceus de Kyrkestone (“IOCE”): These were issued from Spring 1278. Six examples of full pennies have been located. Two are museum specimens; the others in private ownership. Four different obverse & reverse dies have now been identified – double the number published by Eaglen.