The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of May 13, 2024
Noble: Edward III Standing in Ship with Shield of Arms (obverse); Ornamental Cross with Lis Terminals (reverse)
1351
Location: not on view
Did You Know?
The noble was the first English gold coin produced in larger numbers and was introduced by King Edward III.Description
Bearing in mind the primitive tools and methods of production in the 1300s, this noble, and other similar pieces are remarkable for their beauty and fineness of detail. In all the indentures of this period a clause was inserted providing for the trial of the Pyx. The Master of the Mint was supposed to place in the Pyx, a small box, a sample of all coins struck. These were left for three months and then tested by a committee to verify the weight and fineness. For many centuries the Trial of the Pyx took place in the Pyx Chamber at Westminster Abbey which visitors may still see today. In the 1800s the trial was transferred to Goldsmiths Hall where it is still held annually. Each three months some initial or secret mark was put on the coin to show that another three month period had started. These marks consisted of initial marks plus combinations of single or double annulets, broken annulet, unbarred N's, reversed S's, and so forth.- -1969Mrs. Emery May Holden Norweb (1895-1984), Cleveland, OH, gifted to the Cleveland Museum of Art1969-The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Cleveland Museum of Art, and Emery May Norweb. English Gold Coins, Ancient to Modern Times, On Loan to the Cleveland Museum of Art from the Norweb Collection. [Catalog. 1968. p. 19
- Year in Review: 1969. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 27-February 22, 1970).English Gold Coins: Ancient to Modern Times. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1963).
- {{cite web|title=Noble: Edward III Standing in Ship with Shield of Arms (obverse); Ornamental Cross with Lis Terminals (reverse)|url=false|author=|year=1351|access-date=13 May 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1969.160