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Silver Stater Four Branch
| Issuer | Durotriges tribe (Celtic Britain) |
|---|---|
| Year | 40 BC - 35 BC |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Highly stylised and abstracted reverse derived from the classical disjointed horse motif of the Gallo-Belgic prototype, here reduced to near-total abstraction. The field displays a large cluster of bold spherical and sub-circular pellets of varying sizes, representing the vestigial body and limbs of the horse. Two curved incuse lines in the lower field serve as the last remnant of the horse's body outline or wheel symbol. A small trident-like or branch symbol appears in the lower left, accompanied by a rectangular element to the upper left, possibly a residual charioteer or wheel fragment. No legend or inscription is present. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
The Durotriges occupied what is now Dorset and Somerset, and their silver coinage underwent a striking and well-documented degradation over roughly a century — beginning as imitations of the Macedonian gold stater of Philip II, passed through Gaul, and ending in abstract schematic forms barely recognizable as coins at all. The "Four Branch" type sits near the terminal end of that devolution, its silver content by this period substantially reduced from earlier issues, reflecting either deliberate debasement or chronic metal shortage in the decades following Caesar's expeditions to Britain.
The tribe never adopted Roman coinage after the conquest of 43 AD, an unusual holdout that suggests either geographic isolation or deliberate resistance in the southwest.