Historical Context

Richard III assumed the throne of England on 26 June 1483 following the political upheaval that attended the death of his elder brother Edward IV on 9 April 1483 and the subsequent deposition of his nephew, the young Edward V. His formal coronation took place at Westminster Abbey on 6 July 1483. Richard's twenty-six-month reign concluded on 22 August 1485 on the battlefield at Bosworth Field, where his defeat by Henry Tudor brought the Plantagenet dynasty to an end and inaugurated the Tudor period.

The angel series discussed here is associated with the Tower of London Mint. On 20 July 1483, Richard III concluded a formal mint indenture with Sir Robert Brackenbury, appointing him Constable of the Tower, Master Worker of the King's Moneys, and Keeper of the Exchange. This indenture mandated that coinage operations maintain the metrological and artistic standards established during the fifth year of Edward IV's reign (1465). Under this system, the gold angel served as a primary high-value denomination, tariffed at six shillings and eight pence (one-third of a pound sterling, or eighty silver pence). Its statutory standard called for an alloy of 23 carats 3.5 grains fine gold (~99.48% pure) and an official weight standard of 80 troy grains (approximately 5.18 grams).

The rapid sequence of political regimes in 1483, combined with the brevity of Richard's reign, placed unique operational pressures on the Tower Mint. Mint engravers frequently altered existing dies from preceding administrations. Punches representing royal names and personal emblems were systematically re-cut or overstruck, producing a complex series of transitional varieties and mules that reflect the fiscal urgency of the mid-1480s.

Obverse Iconographic Composition

The obverse of the gold angel depicts the Archangel Saint Michael locked in combat with a dragon, symbolizing the heavenly triumph over Satan as recounted in the Book of Revelation (12:7–9). The nimbate archangel is rendered standing with wings outspread, thrusting a long spear terminating in a cross-crosslet downward into the open mouth of the fallen serpentine creature. On typical issues of Richard III, Saint Michael's right foot rests upon the belly of the writhing dragon while his left foot is planted firmly on the exergual groundline. The entire central design is bounded by an inner beaded border, with an initial mark positioned prominently at 12 o'clock breaking into the outer legend band.

Iconographic Identification Clarification

In certain museum collection databases, including the public catalogue entry for accession 1969.168 at the Cleveland Museum of Art, this obverse type has been mistakenly titled as representing Saint George slaying the dragon. Within English numismatics, this is an iconographical error. The winged, haloed figure is Saint Michael the Archangel, who had served as the continuous emblem and namesake of the angel denomination since its introduction by Edward IV in 1465. Saint George did not appear on an English gold circulating coin until the introduction of Henry VIII's George noble in 1526, where the patron saint of England is depicted mounted on horseback without angelic wings.

Obverse Epigraphy and Inscriptions

The obverse inscription encircles the flan in a clockwise direction, beginning immediately following the mint mark at the top of the coin:

  • Script: Late medieval Gothic lettering (Lombardic majuscules).
  • Language: Latin.
  • Standard Reading: RICARD· DI· GRA· REX· ANGL· Z· FRANC
  • Documented Variants: Punctuation is typically executed using single or double saltires (saltire crosses). Spellings on peripheral dies vary between FRAN, FRAnC, and FRAnCE, while rare late-reign die blunders omit letters, such as RICAD.
  • Epigraphic Transliteration: Ricardus dei gratia rex Angliae et Franciae
  • English Translation: "Richard, by the grace of God, King of England and France"

This is a standardized series reading; the exact punctuation and preservation of the photographed coin require separate die-level examination.

Reverse Iconographic Composition

The reverse features a nautical and heraldic composition depicting a single-masted medieval ship riding on stylised ocean waves. Set upon the hull of the vessel is a large quartered shield bearing the royal arms of France modern (three fleurs-de-lis) in the first and fourth quarters, and England (three lions passant guardant) in the second and third quarters. The main mast of the ship is surmounted by a tall Latin cross that extends upward toward the outer rim.

Flanking the upright shaft of the cross are two significant emblems: the royal initial R (Ricardus) placed on the heraldic dexter side (the viewer's left), and a multi-petalled Yorkist rose placed on the heraldic sinister side (the viewer's right). Because formal heraldic terminology references the perspective of the bearer behind the shield or device rather than that of the external spectator, the dexter position corresponds to the visual left and the sinister position corresponds to the visual right. An inner beaded border encircles the vessel, isolating the nautical scene from the outer inscription.

Reverse Epigraphy and Inscriptions

The reverse inscription runs clockwise around the perimeter between concentric beaded rings, commencing at the 12 o'clock position:

  • Script: Late medieval Gothic lettering (Lombardic majuscules).
  • Language: Latin.
  • Standard Reading: PER· CRVCE· TVA· SALVA· NOS· XPC· REDEMPT
  • Documented Variants: Abbreviations of the final word appear as REDEMTOR, REDEDMT, or REDE. The word CRVCE occasionally appears as CRVCEM. Words are normally separated by single or paired saltire stops.
  • Epigraphic Transliteration: Per crucem tuam salva nos, Christe Redemptor
  • English Translation: "By Thy cross save us, O Christ, Redeemer"

This religious invocation, derived from the medieval Catholic liturgy for the Feast of the Holy Cross, was introduced alongside the angel denomination in the fifteenth century to invoke divine protection over the coin and its holder.

Typology and Documented Variants

The gold angel series of Richard III is categorized into distinct types based on the king's initial marks (mint marks) and punch sequences, as classified in foundational studies by E. J. Winstanley and later refined in the Herbert Schneider Collection catalogue:

Type 1: Halved Sun and Rose 1

  • Mark: Halved Sun and Rose (dimidiated rose-en-soleil, the united badge of the House of York).
  • Characteristics: Utilizes the initial mark inherited from the late issues of Edward IV and the brief reign of Edward V. Lettering punches align directly with late Edwardian dies, and the cross on the reverse features relatively broad limbs.
  • References: North 1677 var.; SCBC 2152; Winstanley Type 1.

Type 2: Boar's Head

  • Subtype 2a (Boar's Head 1): Features Richard's personal heraldic badge—a boar's head facing right, characterized by a blunt snout and short tusks. Dies in this group frequently exhibit the boar's head overpunched directly on the older Halved Sun and Rose mark on the obverse or reverse.
  • Subtype 2b (Boar's Head 2): Displays an altered boar's head punch with an open, elongated snout, erect ears, and a protruding tongue. The arms of the reverse cross are noticeably narrower. This represents the substantive central production of the reign.
  • References: North 1676; SCBC 2151; Winstanley Type 2; SCBI 47, nos. 484–494.

Type 3: Halved Sun and Rose 2 and 3

  • Mark: Halved Sun and Rose reintroduced late in the reign (c. late 1484–1485).
  • Characteristics: Struck using modified letter punches, notably featuring a re-engraved letter R with a distinct tail and a broader L. Notable die blunders emerge in this phase, including RICAD on obverses and REDEDMT on reverses.
  • References: North 1677; SCBC 2152; Winstanley Type 3; SCBI 47, nos. 495–498.

Mules and Altered Dies

  • Initial Mark Mules: Obverse dies bearing Boar's Head 1 or 2 paired with reverse dies displaying the Halved Sun and Rose mark (e.g., Schneider no. 484).
  • Re-cut Emblems: Reverse dies displaying the initial R punched over an underlying E (from Edward IV or Edward V) or punched over a pre-existing rose beside the cross mast.

Scholarly Debates and Attribution Limitations

Die Interchange vs. Linear Chronology

Early classifications, notably that of E. J. Winstanley (1944), proposed a strict chronological sequence: Halved Sun and Rose 1, followed by Boar's Head, followed by Halved Sun and Rose 2/3. However, comprehensive die-link analyses by C. A. Whitton (1944) and Peter Woodhead (1996) demonstrated that Tower Mint officials did not decommission serviceable dies simply because a new initial mark was authorized. Older reverse dies were routinely held in reserve and paired with newly sunk obverses across administrative accounting periods. As a result, while initial marks provide a secure typological framework, they do not permit absolute month-by-month calendar dating.

Edward V vs. Early Richard III Attributions

A long-standing numismatic challenge involves separating the coinage struck during the nominal reign of Edward V (April–June 1483) from the surrounding reigns. Historical scholarship by C. E. Blunt established that angels reading EDWARD with an unaltered Halved Sun and Rose initial mark belong to the final accounting periods of Edward IV. Conversely, specimens bearing the name EDWARD but marked with a Boar's Head punched over the Halved Sun and Rose (such as Schneider no. 483) are attributed to Edward V's reign during Richard's period as Lord Protector.

Historical Debates and Provenance Data

In historical literature and earlier museum records, discussions of Richard III's coinage often touch upon the fate of the Princes in the Tower—Edward V and his brother Richard, Duke of York. While Tudor-era accounts asserted that Richard ordered their murder, modern historians note that no contemporary documentary or forensic evidence survives to verify the precise date, location, or direct agency of their deaths.

Regarding physical comparison specimens, such as Cleveland Museum of Art accession 1969.168 (gift of Mrs. Emery May Holden Norweb, diameter 28 mm), the current museum record gives a measured weight of 5.126 g. Consequently, the statutory standard of 80 troy grains (~5.18 g) must be cited solely as the legal mint indenture specification, and cannot be assumed as the exact measured mass of specific comparison coins or uninspected private specimens.

References

  1. Angel: St. George Slaying the Dragon; Ship with Shield of Arms and Cross. Cleveland Museum of Art, Accession 1969.168 (Norweb Collection)
  2. The Angels and Groats of Richard III. British Numismatic Journal, Vol. 24 (1941–1944), pp. 179–189 (journal bibliographic index; book entries are further reading)
  3. Die Links between Edward IV, Edward V, and Richard III. British Numismatic Journal, Vol. 24 (1941–1944), pp. 175–178 (journal bibliographic index; book entries are further reading)
  4. The Coinage of Edward V. British Numismatic Journal, Vol. 22 (1934–1937), pp. 213–224 (journal bibliographic index; book entries are further reading)
  5. British Numismatic Society: Richard III. Institutional bibliography for the Richard III coinage; not a transcription of the mint indenture
  6. The Herbert Schneider Collection, Part I: English Gold Coins and Their Imitations 1257–1603. Sylloge of Coins of the British Isles (SCBI 47), Spink & Son, London (1996), nos. 483–498
  7. English Hammered Coinage, Volume 2: Edward I to Charles II, 1272–1662 (3rd ed.). Spink & Son, London (1991), nos. 1676–1677
  8. Coins of England and the United Kingdom (55th ed.). Standard Catalogue of British Coins, Spink, London (2020), nos. 2151–2152