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Mossop Helmet. Torc Type. East Wiltshire. c.50-40 BC. Celtic silver unit. 14-16mm. 1.00g.
1/2
Auctioneer has chosen not to publish the price of this lot
Norwich, Norfolk
Description
Mossop Helmet. Torc Type. c.50-40 BC. Silver unit. 14-16mm. 1.00g. Female helmeted head left, bean-shaped earpiece with inverted scrolls./ Triple-tailed stallion left, beaded mane attached to small ring, solar spiral and another ring above, boar and two rings below (forming hidden face), neck torc, ring and cross in front. ABC−, VA−, BMC 809, S−. Good VF/EF, lightly toned silver, well centred and boldly struck reverse, with stunning stallion fully displayed, complete solar spiral and handsome boar in high relief. One of the most magnificent Mossop Helmets we’ve had. Found near Devizes, Wiltshire, 2020. EXTREMELY RARE only six others, including one in the British Museum.
What a remarkably sharp reverse! The best we’ve had for this type. There are three distinctly different versions: the Torc Type as above (seven known), the Star Type with a hollow star or cogwheel in place of the torc (one known) and the Foal Type with a small horse instead of the boar (one known). Of the seven Mossop Helmet units with a recorded findspot five come from Wiltshire and only two from Hampshire. It therefore seems more likely that they were issued by a ruler of the East Wiltshire tribal group rather than the Hampshire Belgae. The East Wiltshire people might have been called Cornovii, but this is speculative (see ABC p.107). Because the obverse of the Mossop Helmet units was derived from the Roma head of early Roman denarii (note the X for denarius under the torc) these units were probably the first silver coins struck by the East Wiltshire group (not ABC 2113 or 2116 which both look like Berkshire types). They may have accompanied Savernake gold staters, ABC 2089 and 2091, which have a similar solar spiral and neck torc and a horse with similar ears, mouth and hooves. Quarter staters ABC 2101 and 2103 may also have been part of the same denominational suite. This Mossop Helmet is the second found near Devizes. Its numismatic importance cannot be over-stressed. Firstly, because it confirms beyond all doubt that it is an East Wiltshire type. Secondly, it is the only known Torc Type which clearly reveals virtually every detail of the reverse design, including the X in front of the stallion and the fierce hidden face below it.
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Mossop Helmet. Torc Type. c.50-40 BC. Silver unit. 14-16mm. 1.00g. Female helmeted head left, bean-shaped earpiece with inverted scrolls./ Triple-tailed stallion left, beaded mane attached to small ring, solar spiral and another ring above, boar and two rings below (forming hidden face), neck torc, ring and cross in front. ABC−, VA−, BMC 809, S−. Good VF/EF, lightly toned silver, well centred and boldly struck reverse, with stunning stallion fully displayed, complete solar spiral and handsome boar in high relief. One of the most magnificent Mossop Helmets we’ve had. Found near Devizes, Wiltshire, 2020. EXTREMELY RARE only six others, including one in the British Museum.
What a remarkably sharp reverse! The best we’ve had for this type. There are three distinctly different versions: the Torc Type as above (seven known), the Star Type with a hollow star or cogwheel in place of the torc (one known) and the Foal Type with a small horse instead of the boar (one known). Of the seven Mossop Helmet units with a recorded findspot five come from Wiltshire and only two from Hampshire. It therefore seems more likely that they were issued by a ruler of the East Wiltshire tribal group rather than the Hampshire Belgae. The East Wiltshire people might have been called Cornovii, but this is speculative (see ABC p.107). Because the obverse of the Mossop Helmet units was derived from the Roma head of early Roman denarii (note the X for denarius under the torc) these units were probably the first silver coins struck by the East Wiltshire group (not ABC 2113 or 2116 which both look like Berkshire types). They may have accompanied Savernake gold staters, ABC 2089 and 2091, which have a similar solar spiral and neck torc and a horse with similar ears, mouth and hooves. Quarter staters ABC 2101 and 2103 may also have been part of the same denominational suite. This Mossop Helmet is the second found near Devizes. Its numismatic importance cannot be over-stressed. Firstly, because it confirms beyond all doubt that it is an East Wiltshire type. Secondly, it is the only known Torc Type which clearly reveals virtually every detail of the reverse design, including the X in front of the stallion and the fierce hidden face below it.
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