The most common UK detector find misidentifications

Every detectorist has called the same coin three different things by Tuesday. The misidentifications collected here are the ones that come up over and over in PAS records, detector-forum threads and identification submissions to DetectID. Knowing them in advance saves a lot of re-attribution later.

Charles I shilling vs Elizabeth I sixpence

The single most common UK hammered misidentification. The reverse is identical — long cross fourchee over a quartered shield. Worn examples in particular look maddeningly similar. The discriminators are all on the obverse.

Two independent diagnostics, either of which settles it categorically: bust gender (bearded vs not) and shield quartering (Stuart arms with Scottish/Irish elements vs simple Tudor). Use both as cross-checks.

James I shilling vs Charles I shilling

Both Stuart, both hammered silver, both bearded. The decisive difference is facing direction:

• James I (1603–1625) faces right. Trimmed full beard + moustache. Legend IACOBVS.
• Charles I (1625–1649) faces left. Pointed Vandyke goatee + long love-locks. Legend CAROLVS.

Full breakdown in James I vs Charles I: the facing-direction trap.

Edward I vs Edward II vs Edward III penny

All three use the same basic design — front-facing crowned bust on the obverse, solid long cross with three pellets per angle on the reverse. Distinguishing them is a matter of bust style and class number, neither of which is always available on worn coins.

Roman sestertius vs as

Both are early imperial bronze and both can carry S C on the reverse. The split is weight:

• Sestertius: 25–34 mm, 22–28 g. Heavy.
• As: 25–28 mm, 10–14 g. Much lighter.

If you have scales, weigh it. If not, the sestertius will feel noticeably heavier in the palm than the as — roughly twice as heavy.

English Short Cross vs Long Cross penny

Both 18–20 mm silver pennies, both with crowned facing busts, both Latin legends starting HENRICVS REX. The difference is the reverse cross:

• Short Cross(1180–1247): cross arms stop short of the edge, pellets in each angle.
• Long Cross voided(1247–1279): cross extends to the edge, drawn as parallel lines (voided), three pellets per angle.
• Long Cross solid (1279 onwards, Edward I reform): cross extends to the edge, solid (not voided), three pellets per angle.

Three categorical states, no overlap. The cross length and whether it’s voided settle the period in one glance.

English Long Cross vs Scottish Long Cross

Scottish hammered coinage frequently shows up in northern England and is occasionally mis-attributed as English. The cleanest diagnostic is the reverse angles:

• English Long Cross: three small pellets in each angle.
• Scottish Long Cross(Alexander III first coinage, c.1250–1280): a single five-pointed mullet (star) in each angle.

Mullets are categorical. If you see five-pointed stars instead of pellets, the coin is Scottish.

Henry VIII third coinage vs first/second coinage

Two unrelated questions get conflated here. WhichHenry VIII coinage you’re looking at is settled by bust orientation and silver tone:

• Profile bust right + bright silver→ first (young face) or second (mature face) coinage.
• Facing Holbein bust + coppery surface→ third coinage (1544–47) or posthumous (1547–51).

See how to identify a Henry VIII coin for the full diagnostic.

Roman AE4 vs Restoration farthing

Both small (12–15 mm) copper-alloy discs. UK detector finds produce them in similar quantities and they can look similar to a casual eye.

• Roman AE4: green-brown patina, often crusty; Latin legend with emperor name; reverse type is a personification (Victory, Securitas) or a military scene.
• Restoration farthing(1672–1700): red-brown patina, smoother; English legend CAROLVS A CAROLO or JACOBVS SECVNDVS; Britannia seated on the reverse.

Button vs token vs jetton vs coin weight

Not every small disc that comes out of the ground is a coin. The non-coin small-disc family covers a lot of finds:

• Buttons: usually have a shank or loop on the back. The reverse is typically blank or has a maker’s stamp. The obverse design is often armorial, regimental or decorative.
• Tokens(17th, 18th, 19th century): privately- issued small change, usually with the issuer’s name and town. Often look coin-like but the legend gives them away.
• Jettons(Nuremberg counters): copper-alloy discs used as counting tokens. Common 14th–16th century types have a French or German legend and a stylised reverse (ship, shield, rosette).
• Coin weights: uniface (one-sided) lead or copper-alloy discs imitating the obverse of the gold coin they represent. Used by money-changers. Diameter and weight match the target gold coin’s standard precisely.

Musket ball vs Roman lead bullet

Lead balls are an everyday detector find. The two main candidates:

• Roman lead sling-bullet (glans): typically almond-shaped, sometimes inscribed with a unit name or imprecation. Asymmetric.
• Post-medieval musket ball: round (or near-spherical), often shows a mould seam or sprue mark, sometimes flattened on one side.

A perfectly spherical lead ball with a sprue mark is musket; an elongated almond with no sprue is Roman.

Anglo-Saxon sceat vs medieval cut halfpenny

Both small silver, both pre-modern. The split is shape:

• Sceat: round, 10–13 mm, abstract / runic / zoomorphic design.
• Cut halfpenny: wedge or half-moon shape (literally half a circular Short Cross or Long Cross penny). Categorical.