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Wild type Cunobelin gold stater
荒野型庫諾貝林金斯塔特
Item number: A224
Year: AD 10-42
Material: Gold
Size: 19.2 x 17.3 x 2.1 mm
Weight: 5.51 g
Provenance: CoinCraft 2016
This gold coin is classified as a Wild type Cunobelin gold stater, produced by the Catuvellauni tribe during Cunobelin’s reign from AD 10 to AD 42. The obverse of the coin features a ear of barley, accompanied by the legend ‘AMV’, while the reverse depicts a headless horse running to the right, below which a ring-and-dot ornament is positioned. Below this ornament, the legend ‘CV’ is inscribed.
There are five distinct types of Cunobelin gold staters: Biga, Linear, Wild, Plastic, and Classic. This particular coin is identified as belonging to the Wild type, characterized by the ring-and-dot ornament beneath the horse. Typically, the standard legend on the obverse should read “CAMV”, representing Camulodunum, the capital of Catuvellauni, while the reverse legend should be “CVN”, denoting King Cunobelin.
Cunobelin governed a substantial portion of southeastern Britain from approximately AD 10 to 42, succeeding his father, Tasciovanus, as chief of the Catuvellauni, a tribe based north of present-day London. Either shortly before or after his accession, Cunobelin annexed the territory of the Trinovantes in modern Essex and designated Camulodunum (modern Colchester) as his capital and the location of his mint. From this central location, Cunobelin expanded his influence over much of southeastern Britain, and his coinage evolved from Celtic to Roman-influenced designs, a transformation initiated under his father’s leadership. His dominance was so pronounced that the Roman biographer Suetonius referred to him as Britannorum rex (“King of the Britons”) in his work The Twelve Caesars. Around AD 40, Cunobelin banished his son Adminius, who subsequently fled to Rome and persuaded Caligula to prepare for an invasion of Britain. Although the expedition was organized, it never departed. Following Cunobelin’s death, his other sons, Caratacus and Togodumnus, exhibited hostility towards Rome, providing Emperor Claudius with the pretext to impose Roman rule on the island.