ABSTRACT
This paper examines the historical and archaeological evidence for the bending or folding of coins, and their dedication to a saint, in later medieval Britain. It introduces a new set of data — primarily derived from metal detecting — which challenges previously held assumptions about the purpose, geographical scope and material aspects of the coin folding rite, known from one source as the ‘English custom’. It concludes that folded coins played an important role beyond saintly shrines, with dedicated coins acting as foundation deposits, agricultural petitions and markers of communal identity.
