Simon Coupland
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scoupland.bsky.social
Simon Coupland
@scoupland.bsky.social
FRHistS, lover of Carolingian coinage, Vikings, Jesus and my wife and daughter, though not necessarily in that order
This afternoon! Nelleke speaks about #Frisia, #Vikings, North Sea connections and much more. In Dutch 🇳🇱 but with an English translation available.
www.rug.nl/about-ug/lat...
Inaugural lecture Prof N. (Nelleke) IJssennagger-van der Pluijm FSA: Randzaken verbinden
More informationInaugural lecture Prof N. (Nelleke) IJssennagger-van der Pluijm FSATitle: Randzaken verbindenChair: Cultural history of the southern North...
www.rug.nl
February 6, 2026 at 10:49 AM
"The skeleton of a young 6ft 5in-tall (1.9m) Viking-era man who had undergone trepanation has been found in a mass grave in Cambridgeshire." It's too early to say whether he was Anglo-Saxon or Scandinavian. #vikings #medievalsky
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Wandlebury's Viking-era mass grave finds include trepanned skull
The skull belonged to a young man whose remains were flung into the burial pit, say archaeologists.
www.bbc.co.uk
February 6, 2026 at 8:23 AM
For #FindsFriday the Tønsberg hoard from Vestfold (Norway). a-e: Louis the Pious, Christiana religio; a: Dax; b: Melle; c Sens; d: Paris; e: uncertain mint; f: Æthelstan. There is also a small fragment of a second coin of Melle. Photos: Kim Arneson Svingen and Tore Sørensen.
February 5, 2026 at 9:44 PM
The Skumsnes hoard from Vestland in Norway: eight Christiana religio deniers and one Ecgberht of Wessex (802-839), Rochester mint, from a woman's grave. Also present: two early Danish pennies (KG 3:5 and 4:2). a: Dax; b-e: Melle; f-g Paris; h: Reims; i: Ecgberht. Photos: Søren Diinhoff. #medievalsky
February 4, 2026 at 12:18 PM
For #FindsFriday Scandinavian imitations of Frankish deniers, found at Castricum in Noord-Holland, for a chapter in a book ed. by @ccooijmans.bsky.social. One copies a coin of Louis the Pious, one Lothar I: we know #vikings were settled in this area. Find report at
www.academia.edu/43960277/2020
January 30, 2026 at 9:04 AM
Reposted by Simon Coupland
Interesting line-up of numismatic events for this year including talks from @lucymoore.bsky.social and @scoupland.bsky.social among others…
January 27, 2026 at 4:20 PM
Do you want to read about recent #viking period textile finds from Denmark, Estonia and Norway? (and earlier and later things too, including Roman scale armour). You'll find them all here, in Archaeological Textiles Review 67: atnfriends.com/wp-content/u...
atnfriends.com
January 26, 2026 at 6:57 PM
For #FindsFriday two very small gold bars from the #viking age found in Denmark (🇩🇰 East Jutland) last month
www.tv2ostjylland.dk/randers/muse...
January 23, 2026 at 5:45 PM
An amazing 5th C bronze cauldron now going on display after 10 years of restoration and research
france3-regions.franceinfo.fr/grand-est/au...
January 22, 2026 at 9:12 PM
Tomorrow - livestream of a #Viking evening at the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden in Leiden, with talks in Dutch but then at 20:00 UK time in English! rijksmuseum-van-oudheden.webinargeek.com/vikingverhal...
22 januari: Vikingverhalen
Tijdens de eerste editie van Vikingverhalen nemen vier internationaal gerenommeerde wetenschappers ons mee in boeiende verhalen over oud en nieuw onderzoek naar de Vikingtijd. Het gaat deze avond over...
rijksmuseum-van-oudheden.webinargeek.com
January 21, 2026 at 10:50 AM
Who'd like to see a #viking sword from the Netherlands? I mean, who wouldn't?!
www.gld.nl/amp/nieuws/8...
January 17, 2026 at 3:25 PM
Reposted by Simon Coupland
🚨By-elections to be called automatically when MPs defect to another party - lets get this to the 100,000 signatures needed

petition.parliament.uk/petitions/73...
Petition: By-elections to be called automatically when MPs defect to another party
When an MP decides they want to defect to another party a by-election should be automatically triggered to allow the constituents the opportunity have their democratic right to agree or not with their...
petition.parliament.uk
January 17, 2026 at 9:07 AM
Similar to these!
For #FindsFriday the gilt & niello silver mounts from Östra Påboda, Söderåkra, Sweden, clearly Carolingian sword-belt mounts that have been converted into ornaments. See their originally use in a detail of the Vivian Bible, produced in Tours in the 840s. Images: SHM / gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/b...
January 17, 2026 at 10:35 AM
For #FindsFriday a fabulous set of Carolingian sword belt mounts found near Deventer in 2022. Long ago while writing my PhD I drew how they were worn.
portable-antiquities.nl/pan/#/ensemb...
January 16, 2026 at 1:40 PM
New book just out by Thomas Cirotteau, Lucie Malbos & Éric Pincas - Vikings : enquête sur les femmes des terres gelées cescm.hypotheses.org/35266
January 15, 2026 at 4:03 PM
For #FindsFriday a map of Danish single finds of Carolingian coins from 2016 to 2025, most unpublished. This is for a chapter in a book being edited by @ccooijmans.bsky.social. It shows that Frankish coins were reaching all parts of Denmark, not just trading centres or royal estates.
January 9, 2026 at 3:19 PM
For #FindsFriday the Hiddensee hoard, found in the 1870s in Neuendorf, Lkr. Vorpommern-Rügen. Scandinavian style and Christian crosses suggest a late 10th C date. The neckring is 13.5 cm, the brooch 8 cm, the cross pendants 5.1–6.9 cm. Total weight: 595.5 g pure gold. Now in Stralsund Museum.
January 2, 2026 at 3:35 PM
The largest medieval kogge merchant ship yet discovered, found in the Øresund off Copenhagen and professionally excavated - dating from c 1410 and built in the Netherlands.
www.vikingeskibsmuseet.dk/nyheder/arka...
Arkæologer afslører middelalderligt superskib: "Det er verdens største kogge"
I 600 år har havet ud for København gemt på en kæmpe hemmelighed. Nu kan Vikingeskibsmuseets marinarkæologer sammen med DR-dokumentaren Gåden i dybet afsløre fundet af verdens største kogge, et middel...
www.vikingeskibsmuseet.dk
December 29, 2025 at 8:55 AM
For St John the Evangelist's day a beautiful little (34 mm) 9th-C Anglo-Saxon gold plaque bearing his symbol, an eagle, found in Brandon (Sufolk) and now in the BM. www.britishmuseum.org/collection/o...
December 27, 2025 at 4:29 PM
As we approach Christmas here's another ivory depiction of the nativity - this time in whalebone, on the early 8th C Anglo-Saxon Franks Casket. MAGI is written in runes above - the bird leading them is seen as the Holy Spirit (dove or duck? 😂) 📷 British Museum www.britishmuseum.org/collection/i...
December 23, 2025 at 11:53 AM
For #MosaicMonday a gorgeous colourful mosaic of garlands and birds in the Vatican collection. 📷 my own.
December 22, 2025 at 1:37 PM
As tomorrow I am leading our carol service, here's a gorgeous Carolingian ivory of the nativity in the Vatican (Vat 64477). 📷 my own.
December 20, 2025 at 9:57 PM
For #MosaicMonday one of the glorious mosaics in the baptistery of San Giovanni in Fonte in Naples cathedral. 5th century. 📷 my own 3/3
December 15, 2025 at 11:10 AM