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Billon Stater Turf Cutter
| Issuer | Durotriges tribe (Celtic Britain) |
|---|---|
| Year | 60 BC - 30 BC |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Obverse description | Highly stylised and abstracted wreath motif occupying the upper field, rendered as a fan of radiating lines with lentoid pellets interspersed between the branches, derived from the classical laureate wreath prototype. Beneath the wreath, a characteristic 'turf cutter' device — a crescent-shaped tool form — is depicted in the lower central field, executed in bold relief. Flanking crescents appear to each side of the central motif, a recurrent decorative element of the Durotrigan series. The design is entirely aniconographic and uninscribed, reflecting the late Durotrigan tradition of abstract, heavily devolved Celtic coinage. No legend or exergual inscription is present. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | A severely disjointed and schematised horse facing right, characteristic of the advanced devolution seen in late Durotrigan staters. The body is reduced to a series of disconnected linear elements: four vertical strokes represent the legs, while four horizontal lines emanating from a central block suggest the tail. No discernible head is present, the anatomy having been wholly abstracted into geometric components. Numerous pellets are scattered above the horse figure across the upper field. The design descends from the Armorican stater tradition but has been reduced to near-total abstraction through successive die copying. |
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| Additional information |
The Durotriges occupied what is now Dorset and parts of Somerset and Wiltshire, and their coinage tells a story of progressive debasement without parallel among British Iron Age tribes. Starting from Gallo-Belgic prototypes with recognizable horse and head types, the Durotrigan series degraded so thoroughly over successive generations that the "Turf Cutter" variety — named by dealers for the tool-like slash marks reading across the flan — retains almost no silver content at all.
Julius Caesar's invasions of 55 and 54 BC disrupted cross-channel trade networks that had sustained access to Armorican silver. The Durotriges, geographically exposed on the southern coast, felt this acutely.