The Henry III long-cross penny: 1247 reform to Edward I

The Henry III long cross voided penny (1247–1279) is the single most common medieval silver coin found by UK detectorists. The reverse is unmistakeable — a voided long cross that extends to the rim, three pellets in each angle. Class 3 and Class 5 between them account for most surviving examples, and once you’ve seen a few they’re instantly recognisable.

The 1247 reform

Henry III inherited the Short Cross design that had been struck unchanged through four kings (Henry II, Richard I, John, and the first thirty years of Henry III himself). By 1247 the coinage was in trouble: the Short Cross had been so widely clipped that the weight standard had collapsed, and the “immobilised legend” meant there was no accountability for individual issues. The new long-cross design solved both problems — the cross extending to the rim made clipping immediately obvious, and the new reverse legend named both the moneyer and the mint.

Class structure

The voided long cross series subdivides into seven main classes (with sub-classes that take you well into the dozens for serious attribution). The first five belong to Henry III; Class VI is Edward I’s first coinage, still using the voided cross before the 1279 reform took over.

The sceptre test

The single quickest diagnostic for Henry III long-cross pennies is whether the king is holding a sceptre on the obverse. The vertical bar of the sceptre rises from his right shoulder to the top of the coin:

• No sceptre→ Classes I–III (1247–1251).
• Sceptre present→ Classes IV–VII (1251 onwards).

Where does the obverse legend start?

On Class IV the legend starts at 12 o’clock (top of the coin). On Class V the legend shifts to 10 o’clock to accommodate the sceptre. This is a categorical Class IV vs Class V tell on coins clear enough to show the legend start point.

The moneyer and mint legend

The reverse names both moneyer and mint, e.g. NICOLE ON LVND (Nicholas at London) or RICARD ON CANT (Richard at Canterbury). The 1247 reform ran a network of seventeen mints, of which London and Canterbury account for over half the surviving output.

Cut halfpennies and farthings

The voided long cross was deliberately designed to be cut. The cross runs to the rim so a coin could be sheared cleanly along its axis into halves (yielding a half-moon halfpenny) or quarters (yielding a wedge-shaped cut farthing). Cut halfpennies and farthings are extremely common UK detector finds — often more common than whole pennies on productive medieval sites.

• Cut halfpenny: 0.55–0.75 g, half-moon shape. One side carries half the obverse, the other half the reverse cross-quadrant.
• Cut farthing: 0.30–0.40 g, wedge shape. Less common but well-attested.

Telling Henry III long-cross from earlier and later cross types

The three medieval cross types are categorically different and don’t overlap. Once you can recognise them at a glance, period attribution falls out:

Procedural identification

1. Confirm the reverse is a voided long cross with three pellets per angle. If the cross is solid (not voided), you have an Edwardian or later penny; see our Edward I, II, III pennies guide.
2. Sceptre check.No sceptre = Class I–III. Sceptre present = Class IV onwards.
3. Read the obverse legend if any survives. HENRICVS REX TERCI = Class II. HENRICVS REX III = Class III, IV or V. EDW R ANGL = Class VI or VII (Edward I).
4. For sceptre coins, where does the legend start? 12 o’clock = Class IV; 10 o’clock = Class V.
5. Read the mint and moneyer on the reverse. Useful for find-spot context and rarity assessment.