About potin, a term used for cast alloy coinage, and examples found in Iron Age Britain.
Potin describes cast alloy coinage, not a single denomination or fixed recipe. Potin types are known from Iron Age Britain, including finds classified as Thurrock and Kentish pegged potins. Their regional names and classifications are useful starting points, but do not establish that every community used the same types.
Unlike struck coins, potins were cast in moulds. Their dates and distribution should be assessed type by type rather than reduced to one date range for all British potin coinage. The British Museum's coin collection and the Portable Antiquities Scheme database provide records for examining individual examples.
The Potin Alloy: High-Tin Bronze
Potin alloys were not compositionally identical: copper could be combined with tin and lead in differing proportions. A pale appearance on some pieces is not enough to infer a precise recipe or a common standard without analysis of that coin.
Abstract Mythology and Horned Beasts
Potin designs vary by type. Some have highly stylised heads and animals, but an abstract motif should not automatically be identified as a particular myth or deity:
- Obverse: Some types adapt a human-head design into simplified forms.
- Reverse: Animal-like motifs occur on some examples, with details varying between types.
Clay Strip Casting Technique
Because these pieces were cast rather than struck, moulding marks and irregular edges can help distinguish manufacturing features from intentional design. The details should be checked against the individual find record.
British potins are best understood through their individual find contexts and types: the label alone does not tell us who accepted a coin, what it bought, or how far it travelled.