Noble: Henry IV Standing in Ship with Shield of Arms (obverse); Ornamental Cross with Lis Terminals (reverse)

About this artwork

This is an exceedingly rare coin, only five pieces are known. Of them three are in the British Museum, one with the American Numismatic Society, and one in the Norweb collection, this specimen. Classified as part of the "heavy coinage series," refers both to its great rarity and to the economic state of England at this period. With the ascension of Henry IV, the first king of the House of Lancaster, an economic crisis caused the export of English coins and the import of base foreign currencies. ...