File:Penny of Adulf.png

English: Lodge's illustration of an early 7th-century gold tremissis minted in Merovingian France or Friesland by an otherwise unknown moneyer or petty king named Audulf, misrepresented as a silver sceat or penny of the English king Eadulf. Lodge & Clarke copied the mistakes of Robert Cotton, John Speed, and numerous others without access to the coin itself. A 1606 note on the coin by Fabri de Peiresc makes it clear that Speed's garbled inscription and misrepresentation of the coin as silver were mistakes and not the result of a coin type distinct from the 3 other surviving examples of this issue.

Whether Frankish or Frisian, the coin is a late example of the tremissis originally intended to represent ⅓ solidus. The tremissis is also described as a triens &c. in Frankish contexts and a thrymsa &c. in Anglo-Saxon English contexts. As such, this coin type is now usually described as an "Audulfus Frisia Triens". Griegson notes this particular coin is AV 13 mm 1.34 g with a diademed bust facing right obverse and a cross potent on a triangular base and step reverse. The actual coin has an upper-case alpha (Α) under the cross's left arm and a lower-case omega (ω) under the cross's left arm, both connected upwards to create the appearance of a scale. Speed's engraving mistook these for a single vine, copied by subsequent printers and scholars until it was sometimes further mistaken for a snake. Speed's engraving turned the actual coin's 6-pointed star into a 5-pointed one; Walker and subsequent printings omitted it.

Obverse: AVDVLFI+VS PRISIN [idem in Walker, AVDVLFI+VSFRISIN in Speed, AVDVLFVSFRISIA in De Peiresc & on the actual coin, Audulfus Frisia, generally understood as intending either "Audulf King in Frisia" or "Minted by Audulf the Frisian"]

Reverse: VICTVRIA ADVLFO [idem in Speed & al., VICTVRIA AVDVLFO in De Peiresc & on the actual coin, intending VICTORIA AVDVLFO, generally understood as either commemorating "Victory by Audulf" over the Franks, some other local enemy, or paganism or as a partially garbled mimicking of earlier tremisses and solidi, particularly the CHLOTARII VICTVRIA issues of Clothar II]

Clarke's (erroneous) notes state: "... Sir Andrew Fountaine has exhibited a penny of Adulf's, who succeeded his uncle Aethelwald, and was king of the East Angles about A. D. 664. This is the coin. [Vid. Hickes, Thesaur. Septentrion. vol. II. p. 172.]

"It is plain by this very coin, that the regard to the Roman manner of striking their money was not then intirely laid aside in England. The head has that sort of diadem round it, which was sometimes used by the emperors; and the legend is avdvlfivs prisin. Sir Andrew Fountaine, who has explained the legend of most of the Saxon coins, says he does not know what to make of prisin; but suspects it to to be the name of the mint-master, or one of the principal nobles of Adulf's court. Mr. Thwaites [In Apprendice ad Conspectum Thesauri Hickesiani.], in revising the legends of these coins offered no conjectures upon this. As the whole legend is Latin on both sides, and the coin is evidently struck in the Roman taste, I should conclude, that pri.si.n. belongs to the prince himself, and is the title that he assumed upon his coins, and must be read avdvlfivs princeps sigeberti nepos [i.e., Emperor/King/Prince Audulf, Grandson of Sigebert]. Adulf was the son of Sigebert's cousin-german. The Romans used fratres [Dr. Taylor's Elements of civil law, p. 334.] not only for brothers, but first cousins. In this view their descendants the next in degree were properly called nepotes. The same terms of relation continue even to this day in Wales; they are applied not only to the father's or mother's brother, but to the first cousins, who by their collateral descendants are usually called uncles. The Romans expressed these relative distinctions in the ascending line in the same manner. Suetonius [Suetonius in Augusto, c. 8.] calls Julius Caesar, avunculus Augusti, who was his grandmother's brother. In the lower ages, and I believe I might say, much earlier, the word nepos was used in a still greater latitude, and applyed to the sons of second cousins. William the Conqueror, at the siege of York, is said to have given all the lands of the Saxon earl Edwin in Yorkshire to Alan earl of Britanny.

"'Ego Gulielmus [Brady's History of England, Vol. I. p. 199. Here Dr. Brady observes "that Alan married the Conqueror's daughter Constance; but why he calls him nephew, I know not." The reason was the relation here mentioned. The Romans sometimes used Nepos in a more extensive signification, for any descendant, that was below another in the collateral line, how remote soever. Thus Ovid in his address to Cupid:
"'At tu sic habeas serientes cuncta sagittas;
"'Sic nunquam rapido lampades igne vacent;
"'Sic regat imperium, terrasque coerceat omnes
"'Caesar, ab Aenea qui tibi fratre nepos.
De Pont. I. III. ep. iii. ver. 59.],
"cognomento Bastardus, rex Angliae, do et concedo tibi nepoti meo Alano Comiti Britanniae omnes villas et terras, quae nuper fuerunt comitis Edwini in Eborascira, cum feodis militum, ecclesiis, &c.'

"He calls him nepos, as being in the collateral descending line, one degree below him. Judith the Conqueror's grandmother was sister to a duke of Britanny, who was Alan's great grandfather. Adulf was in a stricter and more usual sense Sigeberti nepos. The legend upon the reverse of this coin is victvria advlfo [There was no great regard to orthography in these ages. Adulf's name is written differently upon the same coin: round the head avdvlfivs, pronouncing the a open, like a diphthong: on the reverse advlfvs with two vowels omitted: in the preface to the council of Hatfield it is aldvvlfvs. with two letters different from both the former. The reverse shews, that they pronounced o in victoria, like a diphthong, as the French do at present, though not as oi, but as oo, or ou; for the u had frequently that sound, as we learn from Terentianus Maurus,
"'Graeca diphthongus OY literis tamen nostris vacat:
"'Sola vocalis quod V complet hunc satis sonum.'
Gram. vett. p. 2393.
But in the coins of these barbarous ages there is sometimes no knowing whether the legends are owing to the ignorance of the engraver, or their way of pronouncing the word. Thus in a coin of Attila's the head is attired with wings, like a Victory, and on the reverse an unicorn with his head erect, the legend vlatos; which probably meant nothing more than alatvs, to express the rapidity of his conquests; but whether they pronounced that word like vlatos, or the v was by the engraver's ignorance or accident inverted, is dubious. This is certainly much more probable that Beger's conjecture, who supposes, that this coin did not belong to to Attila the Hun, but to one Attila, whose family-name was Ulatus: A person, whose age and country is entirely unknown, and whose existence may very justly be disputed. Beger's Thesaur. Brandenburg. vol. I. p. 313.].
The ornaments are a cross erected upon a globe, and a serpent twined round the top of the cross, as intirely subdued. What this victory of Adulf's was, is impossible to say. The history of the East-angles is the least known of any part of the heptarchy. They had apostatised, and returned to paganism. Adulf might possibly take up arms upon this occasion, assert the subject's right to the liberty of using their churches, and by this means endeavour to reestablish the christian faith. Such an enterprize as this was in no way unsuitable to Adulf's character. In this view the ornaments upon the reverse of this coin are very proper emblems of his success. He was certainly very active in promoting the religion he professed. He assisted at the council of Hatfield [Vid. Wilkin's Councils, vol. I. p. 52.] under archbishop Theodore, A. D. 680; where the doctrine and discipline of the church of England, as one national church, was first established.

"But whatever the reverse means, the coin itself is remarkable. It does honour to the memory of both these princes. The great sanctity of Sigebert's character, the high reputation he was in, both for religion and learning, made Adulf choose to distinguish himself as a collateral descendant from his family, who was, upon all accounts, one of the most respectable princes of that age. The care he took to promote the progress of learning in that kingdom was extremely laudable. Bede ['Institutit scholam, in qua pueri literis erudirentur; juvante se episcopo Felice, quem de Cantia acceperat, eisque paedagogos et magistros juxta morem Cantuariorum praebente.' Bedae Historia Eccles. I. iii. c. 18. p. 121.] informs us, that he founded an episcopal see at Dunmoc, now Dunwich in Suffolk, and that, under the care of their first bishop Felix, a school was opened there for instructing the youth of that country. The first nurseries of learning in England were the cathedral churches. Austin and his followers began that practice at Canterbury: Sigebert followed the same plan: Bede says it was juxta morem Cantuariorum. Some members of this new cathedral were appointed for that purpose. This regulation continued for many ages afterwards. Among the offices assigned by statute to the dignitaries of cathedral churches, the business of instructing youth belonged to the Chancellor: Cancellarius debet scholas regere.

"The historians of the following ages make Sigebert's munificence in the encouragement of learning more extensive. Malmesbury ['Scholas literarum per loca instituit, quod pro magno certe debet praedicari.' De gestis regum, lib. I. c. 5. 34. Hen. Huntingdon, p. 332. Matt. Westmonast. p. 115.], Huntinton, &c. say, that he erected such seminaries in several parts of his kingdom. Nor is this inconsistent with Bede's account, who says, that he built a monastery ['Erat autem monasterium sylvanum, et maris vicinitate amoenum, constructum in castro quodam, quod lingua Anglorum Cnobheresburg, i. e. urbs Cnobheri vocatur; quod denique rex provinciae illius Anna, ac nobiles quique augustioribus aedificiis et donariis adornarunt.' Bedae H. E. p. 122. now Burgh-castle, not far from Yarmouth.] for Furseus, who came from Ireland to assist in the conversion of his subjects; and that, before his death, he retired to another monastery, which he founded at Bury [Bede does not mention the name of this monastery; but it appears from the registers of that abbey, and other authorities, that it was at Bury, then called Bedericsworthe. See Monast. Angl. tom. I. p. 291. Tanner's Notitia, p. 504. Burton observes from Abbo Floriacensis, that it was called villa regia; and that the places, where there had been any villas or houses for Roman governors were usually made villae regiae by the Saxons.]. But we were not to conclude from hence, that there were (strictly speaking) any regular monastic foundations at that time in England. Collegium and Monasterium were words of the same import, but none of them established for the observance of any particular rule, or confined the votaries dedicated to the severer austerities of a monastic life. The Saxon monasteries of that age were convents or colleges of secular clergy, married, or unmarried, where youth were instructed, and persons of rank and even of a military profession had the privilege of retiring for the sake of a sequestered life, to be employed either in study or devotion. Along with these persons, others of both sexes, professing the stricter discipline of a single life, were equally admitted, and called Monks or Nuns; but, after this profession, were allowed to marry, if they pleased. Of these mixed societies must all these Saxon monasteries [This was Mr. Wharton's opinion, Ang. Sacra, tom. II. p. 91. Inett's Church Hist. Vol. I. p. 124. 127. In this vie the surprising irregularities in what were called monasteries, in Bede's time, may be accounted for. They were often private property, belonged to a family, and the same men were sometimes abbots and captains. Bedae Epist. ad Egbert. edit. per Ware, p. 73. to 79.] be understood.

"This is all that is known of Sigebert's foundations. To extend them further, to place the University of Cambridge in this catalogue, seems, in all appearance, a very groundless surmise, and exercising a very arbitrary authority in explaining evidence. Our Universities, so eminent for their researches into all the great branches of useful learning, should disdain the mean office of appealing to any fabulous antiquities for their own original.

"After this there is a long chasm in the Saxon coins..."

See Griegson, De Nederlandsche Bank, & Vanbrabant.