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Silver coin boom in medieval England due to melted down Byzantine treasures
Chemical analysis reveals origin of coinage that stimulated trade and helped fuel development of new towns from seventh century
Several decades after the Sutton Hoo burial, starting in about AD660, there was a sudden rise in the number of silver coins in circulation in England, for reasons that have long puzzled archaeologists and historians. The ruler honoured at Sutton Hoo, thought to be Raedwald of East Anglia, was buried with a collection of Byzantine silver bowls and other items which, if melted down, could have made 10,000 pennies, the authors say. “It’s fair to say we were surprised by this result,” said Dr Jane Kershaw, an associate professor at Oxford University’s school of archaeology and the study’s lead author.
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