Museum buys rare King Alfred the Great coin

The penny is believed to be the earliest known use of the name Exeter

A museum in Exeter has said a rare Anglo-Saxon coin - one of only three known to exist and made in the city more than 1,100 years ago - is "finally coming home".

The inscription on the silver penny is believed to be the earliest known use of the name Exeter.

According to the Royal Albert Memorial Museum (RAMM), which bought the penny for an undisclosed sum, it was made in Exeter in about 895-899 on the orders of King Alfred the Great.

The coin had been in the Dr Irving Schneider Collection in America since 1989, but the collection came up for auction in Zurich in May, allowing the museum a chance to buy it.

Only three examples of the coin are known to exist, with the other two in the British museum.

The discovery of this coin was made near Preston, in the Cuerdale Viking Silver Hoard in 1840.

RAMM's assistant curator Tom Cadbury said: "This little coin is an incredibly important piece of Exeter's history.

"It was made 1,130 years ago making it the earliest known use of the name Exeter.

"Only three of these coins have ever been found and the museum has been aware of this one's existence since 1868.

"It's incredible that it's finally coming home."