First Scots coin sold at auction

ONE OF Scotland’s first ever coins, struck almost 900 years ago, has fetched £1,500 at auction.

The “very rare” silver penny was struck some time after 1136, in the reign of King David I.

The coin showed a profile bust of the King holding a sceptre, and a cross with fleurs de lis on the reverse.

It went under the hammer at Noonans auctioneers in London, where it attracted international interest. It was sold to a bidder in Scotland, after a bidding battle.

King David I was the first Scottish monarch to issue coins, following the capture of Carlisle in Northumbria, which gave him the city’s mint and nearby silver mines.

The silver penny sold is thought to have been struck in Berwick — then part of Scotland — or Roxburgh in the Borders or possibly in Edinburgh.

Jim Brown, Noonans’ coin specialist, said: “The David I silver penny was the first coin made in Scotland and shows the king holding a sceptre.

“It sold at its top estimate of £1500 to a Scottish collector and we are very pleased that it is going home during the 900th anniversary year of David I’s Coronation.”

The coin was among the highlights of a large collection spanning the history of the Scottish coinage from King David I to Queen Anne, who was on the throne when the Edinburgh Mint produced its last batch in 1709.