4. Chilton Foliat, Wiltshire the Chilton Foliat II Find Was Made in 1997, One
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
154 NEW HOARDS FROM SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY ENGLAND Scotland, James VI Eighth coinage (1601-4) Thistle-merk 1602 1 6.33 Half thistle-merk 160- 1 3.16 Spanish Netherlands, Philip IV Ducaton Brabant Antwerp mint 1632 1 32.32 4. Chilton Foliat, Wiltshire The Chilton Foliat II find was made in 1997, one of the last cases to fall under the old Treasure Trove system, before the implementation of the new Treasure Act in September 1997. It was note- worthy also through having been found during a metal detector rally on Sunday, 7 September. The initial discovery was made by Mr B. Jenner, and at the subsequent inquest he and Mr A. Stewart were named as co-finders.17 The find was passed to the British Museum by way of Devizes Museum, and a report prepared for the coroner in October 1997. It was declared to be Treasure Trove at an inquest held at Salisbury on 31 July 1998. The find was subsequently acquired by the Devizes Museum. The face value of the seventy five coins in the find was £4 9s., and the latest coins present were the 1644 Oxford half-crown and coins of initial mark (R), in use 1644-5, so a deposit date of around 1644-5 can be suggested. The hoard also represents good quality coin, near the top of the range for the average weights of each denomination and reign when compared to other hoards of similar date (see Appendix, p. 170 below). Chilton Foliat, like Wroughton, lay close to the heart of royalist power in 1642-6. It lies on the north bank of the River Kennet, and was not far from Hungerford, a royalist garrison in 1643-4, close to the main road from the west to London which linked the major royalist strongholds of Marlborough and Newbury.18 It was thus close to the scenes of significant royalist victories, par- ticularly the first battle of Newbury in September 1643, after which a garrison of 200 foot, twenty five horse and four guns taken from Earl Rivers' Regiment was established at Donnington Castle. Donnington was besieged briefly in July 1644 by Lt.-Gen. Middleton, and again in September- October, before being relieved by the king from Oxford. Following the second battle of Newbury, the king's treasure was stored in the castle, until it could be reclaimed. The date of these last events would certainly suit the deposit of the hoard. The manor of Chilton Foliat was held by the Popham family, and the then lord, Sir Francis Popham, died in 1644.19 Chilton Foliat was well within the twenty-mile raiding zone of the local royalist forces, especially those at Donnington, which remained in royalist hands until April 1646. The find appears to be quite similar to another Wiltshire hoard of about the same date, from Allington, All Cannings, about thirty miles away to the west, beyond Marlborough.20 This was recorded as including at least 106 coins, ending with eight half-crowns of initial mark (R), and witWeighth a summaryBristol or Oxford piece dated 1643. Halfcrowns Shillings Sixpences - 1561 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 Elizabeth 1561-83 5.68 3 94.7 2.68 8 89.3 1583-1603 5.86 4 97.7 2.71 5 90.3 James I 5.64 2 94 Charles I 14.95 14 99.7 5.98 34 99.7 3 4 100 17 The recovery of the find is described at length in both the Searcher and Treasure Hunting for November 1997. 18 VCH Wiltshire vol. 16, edited by D.M. Crowley (1999), p. 89. 19 VCH Wiltshire vol. 16, p. 94. 20 Besly, English Civil War Coin Hoards, p. 90, Ft. NEW HOARDS FROM SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY ENGLAND 155 CATALOGUE Elizabeth I cross crosslet (1560-1) 5.68 5.72 Shilling martlet (1560-1) 1 5.65 A (1583-84/5) 1 5.92 hand (1589/90-91/2) 6.14 tun (1591/2-94) 1 5.65 2 (1602-3) 1 5.72 pheon (1561-5) 1561 1 2.65 Sixpence lion (1566/7-67) 1566 1 2.57 coronet (1567-70) 1568 2.66 2.75 castle (1570-72) 1571 2.79 ermine (1572-3) 1572 2.7 1573 2.63 plain cross (1578-80) 1578 2.65 A (1583-84/5) 1584 2.88 hand (1589/90-91/2) 1591 2.81 2.51c 1 (1601-2) 1601 2.71 2.66 James I First coinage Shilling Second coinage lis (1604-5), 2nd bust 5.42 Shilling Third coinage lis (1604-5), 3rd bust 5.85 Halfcrown trefoil (1624) 14.55 Charles I Tower mint Halfcrown II portcullis (1633-4) 1 15.01 III crown (1635-6) 1 14.75 IV star (1640-1) 2 14.61 14.95 triangle-in-circle (1641--3) 5 14.83 15.39 14.46 15.14 14.9 III (P) (1643-4) N2213 1 14.95 (R) (1644-5) N2213 1 15.24 (P) or (R) N2213 1 14.94 Shilling plume (1630-1) N2221 1 5.67 portcullis (1633-4) N2223 1 5.9 bell (1634-5) N2225 1 6.08 crown (1635-6) N2225 2 5.97 5.73 tun (1636-8) N2225 3 6.13 6.1 5.88 N2229 1 5.97 anchor(1638-9) N2227 1 6.06 N2229 1 5.97 triangle (1639-40) N2231 3 6.82 6.04 6.0 star (1640-1) N2231 4 5.91 5.99 5.84 6.06 triangle-in-circle (1641-3) N2231 7 6.08 6.04 5.93 6.08 6.03 5.95 6.12 (P) (1643-4) N2231 4 5.86 6.12 5.95 6.4 (R) (1644-5) N2231 4 5.72 5.51 5.81 5.46 illegible N2231 1 6.16 Sixpence harp (1632-3) 1 2.96 crown (1635-6) 1 2.96 triangle (1639-40) N2244 1 3.03 Oxford mint (P) (1643-4) 1 3.04 Halfcrown 1642 N2409 (groundline, Oxford plume) 1 15.03 1644 N2418 1 15.13 .