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The Winchester Coin Cabinet

Discover some of the coins in the Winchester Cabinet, a collection of over 3000 ancient coins, medals and tokens collected by William Eyre, an eighteenth-century barrister, held by Leeds Special Collections, University of Leeds Library.
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Pierced silver penny of King Offa of Mercia by Lul found in the Coin Collection at Special Collections, Leeds University Library
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Gold Angel of Charles I found in the Coin Collection at Special Collections, University of Leeds Library.
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Silver denarius by Lucius Hostilius Saserna found in the Coin Collection at Special Collections, University of Leeds Library.
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Gold aureus of Hadrian found in the Coin Collection at Special Collections, University of Leeds Library.
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Gold Gallo-Belgic Stater, Ambiani tribe, Picardy found in the Coin Collection at Special Collections, University of Leeds Library.
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Copper halfpenny token, Robert Wright, Alfreton found in the Coin Collection at Special Collections, University of Leeds Library.
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Silver tetradrachm, Athens, found in the Coin Collection at Special Collections, University of Leeds Library.
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Silver Shilling of Charles I, Pontefract Castle,found in the Coin Collection at Special Collections, University of Leeds Library.
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Gold solidus of Constans II, Constantinople, found in the Coin Collection at Special Collections, University of Leeds Library.
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Silver penny of Harold II, Canterbury, found in the Coin Collection at Special Collections, University of Leeds Library.
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Gold Fine sovereign of Mary I, London, found in the Coin Collection at Special Collections, University of Leeds Library.
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White metal medal by Bennett of Sarum, found in the Coin Collection at Special Collections, University of Leeds Library.
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Silver tetradrachm in the name of Alexander III, Macedonia, found in the Coin Collection at Special Collections, University of Leeds Library.
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Silver denarius of Julius Caesar, found in the Coin Collection at Special Collections, University of Leeds Library.
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Media credit Leeds University Library

The Winchester cabinet is a collection of over 3000 coins, medals and tokens. It was compiled by William Eyre who was an eighteenth-century sergeant-at-arms, an order of barristers that worked in the common-law courts. Eyre bequeathed the collection to Winchester Cathedral on his death in 1764 and it remained virtually untouched until it was purchased in 1954 by the University of Leeds.

The collection contains coins from the classical period to the mid-1700s, with one or two later editions. There is a strong focus on Greek and Roman, but included are British coins from the Iron Age to the eighteenth century, trade tokens, siege pieces and numerous medals. This online exhibition contains a selection of William Eyre’s coins to give an insight into the variety and quality of the collection.

The Winchester Cabinet is one of the most important parts of the Coin Collection, but its fabric is at risk from repeated handling. This short video, created as part of the Interdisciplinary Interventions in the Brotherton Special Collections project, presents the Cabinet in a novel way, bringing the coins to life and allowing them to speak for themselves. It is intended to demonstrate the potential for a large scale project with a fully interactive output.