Kings of Kent Eadberht Praen 796-798AD Silver Penny Canterbury

Kings of Kent Eadberht Praen 796-798AD Silver Penny Canterbury, moneyer Aethelnoth.

S875, 18mm, 1.24g

An extremely rare monarch, seldom offered to commerce. Some surface cracking and edge loss but stable and with much appeal. Rich, brown patina.

This coin comes with a hand written ticket and was previously sold by Spink

Eadberht III Praen (796-798) – an obscure individual apparently residing at the court of Frankish King Charlemagne (who may well have sponsored his insurrection), Eadberht took power in late 796 following the death of Offa of Mercia. However, his attempt stalled when Pope Leo III refused to ratify his rule – ruling instead that Offa’s successor Coenwulf had every right to wage war on Eadberht and re-take Kent. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle states that Eadberht was quickly captured and brought back to Mercia, but his ultimate fate is unknown. One source states that he was mutilated and blinded, another that he was set free.