English penny from York

This coin is a penny of King Æthelred II the Unready, struck in York (979–985). The moneyer was Snacol. The front of the coin shows Æthelred II in profile facing right. The inscription on the front faintly shows the king’s name and title, ÆÐELRED REX ANGLOX (Æthelred, King of England). The inscription on the back indicates in whose mint and where the coin was struck (SNACOL MO EFERVIC). The name of the City of York was Eoforwīc or Eoforīc in Old English. The back face is of the First Hand type, depicting the right hand with the palm towards the viewer, and the Alpha and Omega signs on either side of the palm.

The coin was included in a hoard found in Väärämaa, Sysmä, in 1870, which contained Islamic, German and English coins as well as jewellery. The hoard contained at least 98 coins, which had been hidden sometime after 1006.