A rare hoard of 1,000-year-old silver coins have been found on the Isle of Man, shedding light on a vibrant Viking-era economy where traders and cash moved through Ireland and England.
Two British metal detectorists, John Crowe and David O'Hare, found 36 coins on the island, which served as a base between Ireland and England for the Vikings, in May.
Most of the coins were minted during the reign of Edward the Confessor, one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings to rule England and during whose childhood the country faced Viking raids and invasions.
Two earlier rulers - Edward's father, Aethelred, and the Viking king Cnut - are also represented in the coins.
They were later studied by US-based researcher Kristin Bornholdt Collins, an expert on Viking Age coins from the Isle of Man.
"This new hoard might be compared to a wallet containing all kinds of credit cards, notes and coins, perhaps of different nationalities, such as when you prepare to travel overseas, and shows the variety of currencies available to an Irish Sea trader or inhabitants of Man in this period," Bornholdt Collins said.
"Having this much closely dated comparative material from separate finds is highly unusual."
More Viking Age silver has been discovered per square kilometre in the Isle of Man than in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, said Alison Fox, curator for archaeology for Manx National Heritage, where the coins will be displayed until 13 October.
