223 



" money of gold should go in payment at a certain price," a 

 petition was presented to the king by the commons praying 

 that exchanges might be established in the chief towns of each 

 county, and that coins of gold as well as silver should be made 

 in York for the ease of the people and the merchants of the 

 North. ^ The prayer of the petition was granted, and in the 

 year 1344 an Act was passed ordering money of gold and silver 

 to be made in the city of York by the coiners and moneyers of 

 the king in the same manner as in the Tower of London.^ 



In the year 1345, Anthony By-the-sea was appointed warden 

 and supervisor of the mints of London, York, and Canterbury ; 

 and Conrad Royer and his associates, Eastland merchants, were 

 authorised to hold exchanges in the same three cities, the king 

 engaging that they should not be compelled to exchange more 

 than 1000 marks per week in London, and 500 marks per 

 week in each of the cities of York and Canterbury.^ As a proof 

 of the encouragement given to foreign artisans to settle in the 

 provinces, it may be mentioned that about this time two gold- 

 smiths from Cologne, and two moneyers from Florence, came 

 to York and were admitted to the freedom of the city.* 



"Whether any of the gold money of King Edward III. were 

 minted at York, I am unable to ascertain. Most probably 

 the earlier fabrication of these beautiful coins did not extend 

 beyond the Tower mint, the circulation of them being at first 

 extremely limited. In the year 1353^ a large coinage of 

 silver money took place. Henry de Brussels, who had pre- 

 viously been the king's mint master at Calais, was now made 

 master of the works of the king's moneyers at York ; and 

 "William de Rockewell, the warden of the Tower mint, was 

 commanded to deliver to him for the use of the York mint, 

 six standards and eighteen trussels for making the king's 

 money of the die called the Gross ; four standards and twelve 

 trussels for the Half-gross ; and three standards and twelve 



> Rot. Pari., Vol. II., p. 149. ' Stat. 18 Edw. III., c. 6. Feed. Vol. V., p. 416. 

 3 Pat. 19 Edw. III., p. 1. m. 15. Ruding, Vol. L, p. 221. 

 * Lawrence de Florence and Bonache de Florence, moneyers, and Sibert de 

 Colonia and John de Colonia, goldsmiths. * 27th Edw. III. 



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