The coin, believed to be a very rare Alfred the Great silver penny dating from 871-899, depicts two seated figures below a dove. It was found by the metal detectorist with the permission of the land owner, who shares 50% of the sale value.

When the seller presented the coin, Clare Auction’s Robin Stone immediately knew it was something special despite the condition due to it being in the ground for over 1000 years, he advised that the vendor contacted the finds liaison officer. Researching and valuing the coin was not straight forward as there are so few examples and none found with the same markings. “After researching extensively, we advised the vendor that the coin should make £8,000 or more at auction, even though it was misshapen and not in perfect condition” said Robin Stone.

The vendor, who wishes to remain anonymous, was delighted with the result, saying “Clare Auction was friendly and helpful from the moment I approached them. They advertised the coin internationally and built excitement about it before the sale, and they only charged me £6 in total with no selling commission. I will definitely be putting more coins for sale with them”.

Robin Stone added “It is always a joy to see a real piece of history going to a collector who will cherish it for years to come and a pleasure to get such a good price for the vendor. We spend a lot of time and effort curating interesting sales and promoting individual lots. It is great to see the hard work pay off”