58 - Curdridge Triad - The TCx3 Collection

Unique ID: 58

Technical details

DataDescriptionProvenanceReferences

Denomination	Quarter Stater	Metal	Gold
Area	Britain	Region	South Western
Issuing Authority	Belgae	Issuer	Unknown
Weight	1.2g	Diameter	12mm
Rarity	Extremely Rare (6 to 15)	Date	50 BC to 40 BC (see note about dating)

Obverse Legend	No Legend
Reverse Legend	No Legend
Obverse Description	The obverse shows a boat with two figures separated by a beaded line topped by a large arc. An S shaped object appears on the left, and pellets on the right. The obverse is sometimes rotated 180 degrees and described as a stylised animal (normally a boar but sometimes a wolf), but the arguments for this are unconvincing and the text required to describe the design as a boar or other abstract animal becomes increasingly convoluted. A possible interpretation of the boat and its passengers was presented by Daphne Nash Briggs in "Reading the images on lron-Age coins: I. the sun-boat and its passengers".
Reverse Description	Note that the intended orientation on the reverse is unknown. The reverse is segmented into quadrants by a thick wavy line running vertically, and a plain line running horizontally. The vertical line ends with three tendrils at each end. The lower left and upper right quadrants contain semicircular ‘torcs’ which enclose pellets. The lower right quadrant contains a butterfly shape, and the upper left contains a ringed pellet triad

Chris Rudd Auction 163 Lot 11 (17/03/2019)

Divided Kingdoms

DK 317. British Da2 Class 1b – Curdridge Triad

The Curdridge Triad is an extremely rare quarter stater that’s frequently mistaken for a Hampshire Thunderbolt (ABC 767). They doesn’t appear in “ABC”, “Van Arsdell”, “Spink”, or “BMC”, and there isn’t a copy in the British museum. There are differences on both sides. The obverse has a dotted vertical line between the two figures, topped by a crescent shape and the quadrants on the reverse are all rotated one place clockwise compared to the Hampshire Thunderbolt. A pellet triad ornaments the upper left quadrant, which sets it apart from the Curdridge quarter stater.

Curdridge Triads are attributed to the Belgae, but it's more likely that they were minted by an unknown tribe no longer in the historical record.

This is one of three in the collection (see 36 and 74).