Cut hammered silver coin.
Likely to be King John 1199 – 1216, Plantagenet era,  but is difficult to confirm.
 
Silver Hammered Coins – Early Hand-Struck Currency
Silver hammered coins are among the earliest forms of machine-independent coinage, produced by hand striking a blank silver flan between engraved dies. In England, silver coinage first came into general use in the late Anglo-Saxon period, notably during the reign of Offa in the 8th century, when the silver penny became the principal unit of currency. From this point onward, hammered silver pennies formed the backbone of English monetary circulation for centuries.
The hammered minting method continued across medieval and early modern Europe until mechanised presses replaced it in the 17th century. In England, hammered silver coinage was issued under monarchs such as Henry VIII, Elizabeth I, and Charles I, with production ending in 1662 during the reign of Charles II.
Because each coin was individually struck by hand, examples often display irregular shapes, off-centre designs, and distinctive variations that reflect the manual minting process. Many were deliberately cut into halves or quarters — commonly known as “cut coinage” — to create smaller denominations when low-value coins were scarce. As their worth was based largely on silver content, dividing a penny into halves (halfpennies) or quarters (farthings) provided practical small change for everyday trade.
 
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