ABSTRACT
Coin finds and written sources provide a wide range of evidence for the use of coins as offerings by pilgrims at medieval English shrines and the economic effects of pilgrimage. Offerings might be placed on top of the shrine or on an altar, but the use of secure offering boxes with slots for coins became increasingly common. Coins from the tomb of Archbishop Richard Scrope at York Minster may have been deposited through gaps in the stonework. Offerings of gold coins might be attached to the shrine or its hangings to display them. Most shrine offerings were coins of relatively low value, and some were foreign coins not legal tender in England. Offerings provided useful financial support for pilgrimage churches, and further support could come from the establishment of fairs and markets used by pilgrims. Coin finds from Bromholm Priory and West Acre in Norfolk, and other religious sites, provide evidence of the commercial environment of pilgrimage churches and monastic institutions.
