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The Hammered Coin – An Object of Art and StrengthA hammered coin is the product of the earliest of all coin producing technologies. From the fifth century BC through the late 15th century, hammer struck coins were the only coins.The three examples shown above illustrate the broad application of this method. Each of these pieces was struck in locations widely separated in time and distance: The gold coin is a Macedonian Stater of Alexander the Great circa 328-320 BC. The thin silver coin with the kingly visage is an Anglo-Gallic Groat of Henry VI struck 1422-1427. The heavy, anything-but-round silver piece with the Jerusalem Cross is a Spanish “piece of eight”. Crudely minted in the New World in 1715, this represents the last hurrah of hammered coinage. Hammered Coin Production ProcessProduce a blank piece of metal of the proper weight and purity for striking.This blank pre-coin is called a “flan” or “planchet”. Ancient Greek coins such as the gold stater were made from flans cast in molds. The medieval groat was much thinner, made from a disk cut from a rolled strip of silver. The Spanish piece of eight, also known as a “cob”, is a rough piece of silver cut from the end of an extruded silver bar.Heat the flan in a furnace.This is called “annealing”. The metal is heated to soften the metal enough to take a clear impression when struck.Prepare dies for the front (obverse) side and back (reverse) side of the coin.The more complex design is usually on the obverse side of the coin. The obverse die was called the “pile” or the “anvil die”. The design was cut into an iron cylinder ending in a shank that fit snug into a socket located in the top of an anvil. Mounted thus, the die was very stable, even under the stress of striking the coin.The reverse die was cut into another cylindrical piece of iron called a “punch”. Position the dies and the flan for striking.Insert the obverse die into the anvil. Place the flan on the anvil, seated on the obverse die. Hold the reverse punch over the flan and…Strike the coin.Strike the top of the reverse punch with a heavy iron hammer, driving the punch into the flan and the flan into the anvil-mounted obverse die.Strike the coin again if the first impression is weak.A hammered coin was often struck multiple times to adequately bring up the design.Remove the freshly minted coin from the anvil die.The larger coins, such as the piece of eight, required more pressure. Striking these pieces was likely a two-man operation – one to hold the reverse punch, the other to swing the hammer.Why Coins Were Hammer Struck For Such A Long TimeStriking coins one-by-one using anvil dies, punches and hammers was labor intensive, slow, and expensive. It was the only way coins were made for a thousand years or so. Why did it take so long find a better way?Several things come to mind. First, the demand for a coinage would relate to the size of the economy it served. Economic activity for the Greeks and Romans, and later, among the myriad medieval fiefdoms, was highly localized. Although the Roman Empire extended over a vast territory, it was a patchwork of small economies that were served well enough by local moneyers. The moneyers (mint masters) were granted coining authority by Rome, but it was their responsibility to organize the production of coinage on site, in whatever hinterland they occupied. Small mints serving local territories meant that limited production was okay. Another factor was a slow to no-growth economy. This was especially true of the Middle Ages, during which the English silver penny remained virtually unchanged for 500 years. With little economic pressure to change, no incentive existed for technological experimentation and development. Hammer striking methods were sufficient to meet coinage needs. In time, the mints of Europe, driven by the growth of trade with Asia, learned more efficient methods for making coins, notably the screw press and the roller press. The cob coins of New Spain were an exception – an interesting story, counter to emerging trends in coin-making technology.
Next… The Cob Coins of New Spain Go to Top of Hammered Coin page… More about how coins were made… Go to Home page…
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