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Agr
is one of the most elusive
rulers of late iron age Britain
and this is without doubt the
prettiest Agr gold quarter
stater we've seen - a
scintillating EF with smooth
surfaces, a superb rearing horse
and - most important of all - an
amazing display of the letters
AGR below it, with each of the
three letters large, complete
and crisp. It's excessively rare
- only the fifth known - and was
found near Stowmarket, Suffolk.
The findspot
supports the theory that Agr
ruled in the eastern part of
Cunobelin’s kingdom. Who was he?
In 1989 Robert Van Arsdell said:
“It has been speculated that
‘AGE’ refers to a son of
Cunobeline, who ruled briefly
before the Claudian invasion.”
This still seems to be a
reasonable speculation. So what
does Agr mean?
 
Was Agr named after a friend in
Rome called Agrippa or Agrippina?
Just maybe, says Philip.
In 2002 Dr Philip de Jersey
wrote: “Guy de la Bédoyère has
suggested to me that AGR refers
to Agrippa, and that maybe, just
maybe, what we have here is the
coinage of a son of Cunobelin
named Agrippa” - or a daughter,
Agrippina. These remain
possibilities. However in 2003
Dr John Sills felt that Agr may
more plausibly be interpreted as
Agricu “that originally meant
something like ‘war-hound’,
prototype of the Old Irish
árchú.”
Reconstruction
of Agr silver unit,BMC 1899,
found at Thurrock, Essex.
Could the bitch that’s attacking
a snake on Agr’s silver unit be
a visual pun on ‘dog of war’? If
so, then it seems to
substantiate John’s
interpretation of Agr as ‘war
hound’. I thank Sue White for
her drawings.
To be auctioned in Chris Rudd's
July catalogue.
5.7.10
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