An Account of the Danes and Norwegians in England, Scotland, and IrelandWorsaae, Jens Jacob Asmussen
History
An Account of the Danes and Norwegians in England, Scotland, and Ireland
Worsaae, Jens Jacob Asmussen
Great Britain -- Civilization -- Scandinavian influences; Northmen -- Great Britain; Northmen -- Ireland
A very frequent inscription on the Scandinavian coins here alluded to,
as for instance in the last engraving, is “Ebraice Civita,” or “The city
of York;” whose ancient name “Eabhroig,” and in the barbarous Latin of
the time “Eboracum,” was converted into “Ebraice.” On other contemporary
coins struck at York, namely on some of what is called St. Peter’s
money, York is also called “Ebracec” and “Ebraicit.” For the Cuerdale
coins, in order to express the name “Ebraice,” coins of French kings of
the city of “Ebroicas,” or Evreux, in Normandy, seem to have been
particularly chosen as patterns; for by a slight change of a few letters
this Ebroicas could be converted into Ebraice; which was the easier
process at a time when the art of stamping coins was not much practised.
An additional proof that these coins were really minted by Scandinavian
kings in Northumberland, and in the city of York, is, that none such
have been found in any other part of England; whilst, on the contrary,
one of Canute’s coins, which have been so frequently mentioned, was dug
up, together with English and French coins of the same kind as those
found at Cuerdale, at Harkirke near Crosby, also in Lancashire; and
consequently at places whose names ending in _kirke_ (church) and _by_
(town), bear witness no less than that of Cuerdale (from _dal_, a
valley) to the dominion of the Northmen in those parts.
Should any doubt still exist that, so early as the ninth century,
Danish-Norwegian kings and jarls minted a considerable number of coins
in York, in imitation of contemporary Anglo-Saxon and French coins, it
is at all events certain that the Northumbrian kings Regnald, Anlaf or
Olaf, and Erik, who resided in York during the first half of the tenth
century, caused coins of their own to be minted there, and which agree
exactly with the historical accounts. Regnald, who reigned from about
912 to 944, was a son of King Sigtryg, and brother to the Olaf before
mentioned, who fought the battle of Brunanborg; Erik (+ 951) is either
King Erik Blodöxe of Norway, or a son of King Harald Blaatand of
Denmark, who is said to have ruled in Northumberland about the same
time.
In the main points these coins are also imitations of the Anglo-Saxon,
but are distinguished from them by various and very striking
peculiarities, which show them to have been coined both by Danes, or
Norwegians, and by conquerors. Erik designates himself on them by the
Latin title “Rex,” as was usual at that time even among the
Anglo-Saxons; but Regnald and Anlaf use the pure Northern title
“Cununc;” or, in the Icelandic mode of writing, _Konungr_, the ancient
Scandinavian word for _King_. Some of these coins have martial emblems
which do not appear on the Anglo-Saxon coins of the same period, and
which, therefore, were clearly intended to be in honour of the warlike
qualities and victories of the Northmen. Erik’s coins have a sword of
the peculiar Scandinavian form, with a triangular pummel at the end of
the hilt.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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