An extremely rare silver penny that was made in Leicester during the reign of William the Conqueror, has sold at auction for a whopping £4,200.
Valuers had expected the coin, made around the time when the Norman invader was compiling the Doomsday Book, to fetch up to £3,500.
But a mystery buyer beat that price by £700, yesterday (THURS), when it was sold at auctioneers Spink & Son, in London.
Auctioneer Richard Bishop said he believed the "excellent condition" of the coin secured the high price.
He said: "It's an absolutely beautiful coin and of a type that is very scarce. It's really lovely.
"In fact, I'd say its the best of its kind that I have ever seen."
He added: "The coin bears a profile of William, who looks very grumpy indeed, but it's very characterful.
"He looks like he's sucking on a lemon, I suppose he must have had a lot on his mind at the time.
"I think it was the penny's excellent condition that ensured it went for a good price.
"These type of coins, especially in such great condition, are highly sought after."
The silver penny was part of lot 526 in the ancient British and foreign coins sale.
It was put up for sale by a private British collector and was described in the auction catalogue as having a "rich, deep mahogany tone".
The coin was made in Leicester by a so-called moneyer, named Friothekest, sometime between the Norman invasion and 1087.
Jon Mann, a coins expert at Spink & Son, speaking to the Mercury last week, said: "It is possible he was of Danish descent due to his name and the fact that at various times the Vikings were in charge in Leicester.
"Friothekest would possibly have been a merchant or alderman who helped run various boroughs. He would certainly have been of some import."
He added: "These pennies were the lowest denomination of coin at the time but people managed to get round that.
"People would often cut the pennies in half to produce a halfpenny or even into quarters to give them a farthing.
"Because of this it is rare to see a silver penny of such quality."
In the late eleventh century ,when the
penny was made, Leicester was considerably smaller place than it is now.
At the time of the Domesday Book in 1086, Leicester was a small walled settlement, divided by two main streets leading to gates at the four points of the compass.
There were around 1,500 people living in 322 houses, in a town surrounded by open fields except to the north, where there were woods.
A spokesman for Leicester City Council's arts and museums service said: "We did not bid on this particular item.
"We have around 20 pennies from this period in our museum collection, including three which were minted in Leicester."
He added: "Visitors will be able to see some of these pennies on display at Jewry Wall when it reopens in the new year.
"Others will be shown at the new Medieval gallery which is due to open at the Guildhall hall in March 2015."
![Rare silver penny made in Leicester centuries ago sells for more than £4,000 at auction Rare silver penny made in Leicester centuries ago sells for more than £4,000 at auction]()