This coin, a gold quarter noble of Edward III (reigned 1312-1377) was found in north Gwynedd on a footpath. It was found in the surface of the track but the material to build up the track has been brought in from elsewhere so original provenance of the find is uncertain. It is not known how this coin ties into the history of the area – it could have been carried by merchants or drovers passing through.
The noble was the first commonly used English gold coin and was first produced in 1344 during the reign of Edward III to replace the short-lived unsuccessful and rarely circulated double florin. The noble and its fractions, the half and quarter noble, were very popular and widely circulated. The quarter noble was valued as eighteen pence.
The mint mark is a Cross 3 (Skingley 2008,156), so this dates to 1351-1361 and is of the fourth coinage of the pre-treaty period. Prior to 1360 Edward III claimed the kingship of France and in the 1350s his army won considerable territories in France and even captured the French king. In 1360 Edward renounced his claims to the French throne in the Treaty of Brétigny, but this secured his French possessions. The coin dates from before the Treaty and announces Edward’s claim to be king of France.
The coin has been clipped around the edges, but the obverse legend should read EDWAR.R.ANGL.Z.[F]RANC.D.hY. (Edward King of England and France, Lord of the Irish) and the reverse reads EXALTABITVR.IN.GLORIA (He shall be exalted in glory) (Shields, P., psdetecting.com). The obverse shows the royal shield quartered with the arms of England and France within a tressure of eight arches and the reverse shows a floriated cross, in each angle a lion passant guardant, all within a tressure of eight arches. *
Storiel has several coins in its collection including the Bangor hoard and coins recently received through the Saving Treasures project.
*From Gwynedd Archaeological Trust Portable Antiquities Scheme report 2017-18.