The Mary Rose was not a treasure ship, the amount of coinage carried on board would have been personal money and that carried for pay/expenses. Bearing this in mind, it is not surprising that only 27 high-value gold coins were found on the ship. Silver coinage was carried on board, but unfortunately silver mineralises and turns into a blackened mass, making it difficult or even impossible to distinguish individual coins. We believe that the number of silver coins recovered are in the three figure range. Fifteen copper-alloy tokens were also excavated.
Gold Coins
Angels:
Eighteen of the gold coins were the type known as angels. These
have a representation of a ship bearing a coat of arms on one side
and St Michael spearing a monster (a representation of the devil)
on the other. The angel was introduced in the first reign of Edward
IV (1461-70) to replace the noble, and was initially valued at 6s.8d.
In 1526 the value of the angel was increased to 7s.6. With the third
coinage of 1544 the value of the angel increased again to 8s., despite
the increased debasement of the coinage. The purity of gold coins
was reduced, firstly to 23 carat, then 22 and finally 20 carat.
The coins that have been dated are as follows:
Edward IV, 2nd reign 1471-83: 3
Edward V?: 1
Henry VII: 1
Henry VII?: 1
Henry VIII, first coinage, 1509-26: 2
Henry VIII, third coinage, 1544-47: 2
Angelet or Half Angel:
Only one of these was found on the Mary Rose, from Edward
IV's second reign (1471-83). The angelet was introduced in the short
second reign (1470-71) of Henry VI.
Half Sovereign:
There are five Half Sovereigns in the collection, all appear to
come from Henry VIII's reign, with three identified as belonging
to the third coinage. One has a London mint mark. These coins have
the royal arms on one face and a rather elderly and grumpy looking
monarch on the other. These coins were worth 10s. in 1545.
Crowns of the Double
Rose:
The Crown of the Double Rose was bought
out in Henry VIII's second coinage (1526-44) to supercede
the very short-lived Crown of the Rose. Worth 4s.6d. when
introduced, it was a debased coin right from the start, being
made from 22 carat gold. The two examples from the Mary Rose
both date from this coinage. They have a crowned Tudor rose
on the obverse and the coat of arms on the reverse.
Rose Noble or Ryal:
The Rose Noble was a revalued and redesigned
Noble. Introduced in the the first reign of Edward IV, (1461-70)
during 1465, the design is full of Yorkist symbolism. The
obverse shows a ship with the Yorkist rose on its side, the
ship also flies a banner with the letter E on it. The reverse
shows a rose on a radiant sun. One of these was discovered
in the ship.
Silver Coins:
Because of the previously mentioned
problems with mineralisation, only two silver coins have been
positively identified. These are both groats, one probably
from Henry VIII's last coinage, having a bearded portrait
of the monarch on the obverse and the quartered shield on
the reverse.
Tokens (Casting Counters
or Jettons):
Tokens were used in conjunction with
a counting board or cloth marked in squares for the reckoning
of accounts. Mostly made in France at first, they were later
issued in the Netherlands and Germany. Nuremberg was a principal
source of supply in the 1500's.
Tokens were purchased in sets, usually of about 100. They may have been used by ships pursers to keep their accounts. They may also have been used as gaming counters, long before "chips" were specially made for this purpose. The varied locations of those found on the Mary Rose would seem to indicate that they may well have been used for the latter purpose.
Fifteen tokens were found on the ship, these divide into three types. The first type has the winged lion of St Mark holding a bible, with an inscription around the edge. The opposing face shows the "Reichsapfel" or orb. There are seven of this design. The second principal type (six in number), show three fluer de lys alternating with three crowns around a central rose. The other face shows the same orb design as above. Again, there is an inscription around the edge.
The last discernable type has a ship on one face with four fleur de lys and an inscription on the other. The last token is too degraded to tell the design. The inscriptions on all the tokens is indecipherable but appears to be in Lombardic lettering.
Sources:
Mary Rose Trust internal report: A. Hildred
Mary Rose Trust internal report: M. Richards
The Casting-Counter and the Counting-Board: F.P. Bernard, 1916
The Story of British Coinage: Peter Seaby 1985
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