Ian Leins

Curator of Iron Age and Roman coins
Coinage of the Roman Empire; Iron Age Britain and Europe Department:
Coins and Medals

 

Ian Leins is responsible for the Museum’s collection of around 120,000 Iron Age coins and Roman coins. His main interests surround the history, archaeology and coinage of Iron Age and Roman Britain and his current research explores the role of Iron Age coinage as a source for understanding the societies of southern Britain before the Roman conquest of AD 43.

Much of his time is taken up with recording and cataloguing coin hoards which have to be reported under UK law. This can involve anything from a quick report on a find of two or three coins to the identification and publication of hoards of several thousand. Ian also manages his department’s continuing commitment to make images and details of its collection of coins and medals available online.

Since joining Coins and Medals in 2000, he has worked in several different roles, including two years as a Finds Adviser to the Portable Antiquities Scheme.

Contact

ileins@thebritishmuseum.ac.uk
+44 (0)20 7323 8271

Current projects

Previous projects

Honorary positions/ membership of professional bodies

  • Associate member of the Museums Association (AMA) since January 2005

  • Director of the British Numismatic Society (BNS) from December 2010

Recent publications

I. Leins and D. Hurst, ‘The Pershore Iron Age Hoards’, (forthcoming 2011)

I. Leins, ‘The Coins’, in V. Score (ed.), Hoards, hounds and helmets: a conquest period ritual site at Hallaton, Leicestershire (Leicester Archaeology Monograph 21, forthcoming 2011)

I. Leins, ‘The Coins’, in D. Graham (ed.), An early Roman ritual site on Frensham Common (Surrey Archaeological Collections, in press, 2011)

I. Leins and R. Kelleher, ‘Coins in context: archaeology, treasure and the Portable Antiquities Scheme’, in B. Cook (ed.)

The British Museum and the future of UK numismatics.  Proceedings of a conference held to mark the 150th anniversary of the British Museum’s Department of Coins and Medals, 2011 (London: The British Museum Press, 2011)

I. Leins and J. Talbot, ‘Before Boudicca: The Wickham Market Hoard and the Middle Phase gold coinage of East Anglia’, British Numismatic Journal 80 (2010)

I. Leins (ed.), with E. Ghey (ed.) and M.H. Crawford (contribution by), A catalogue of the Roman Republican Coins in the British Museum, with descriptions and chronology based on M.H Crawford, Roman Republican Coinage, 1974, British Musuem online catalogue (2010)

I. Leins, Coin Hoards from Roman Britain XII, with R.Abdy, E. Ghey and C. Hughes, (Wettern: Montea 97, 2009)

I. Leins, 'Celtic Coinage', with M. Nick and S. Nieto-Pelletier, in M.Amandry and D. Bateson (eds.), A Survey of Numismatic Research 2002-2007 (Glasgow, International Association of Proffessional Numismatists special publication 15, 2009)

I. Leins, 'What can be inferred from the regional stylistic diversity of Iron Age coinage', in D. Garrow, C. Gosden and J. D. Hill (eds.), Rethinking Celtic Art (Oxford: Oxbow, 2008)

I. Leins, Roman, Medieval and later coins from the Vintry, City of London, with R. Kelleher, Numismatic Chronicle 168 (2008)

I. Leins, 'Coins in Context: Coinage and votive deposition in Iron Age South-east Leicestershire' in British Numismatic Journal 77 (2007), pp.22-48

I. Leins, ‘Community, Politics and Sacrifice: The East Leicestershire hoard’ in British Archaeology, 89 (2006), pp. 34-9

I. Leins, ‘Domitianus II: The forgotten emperor’ in Current Archaeology, 194 (2004), pp. 76-9

I. Leins, The Age of Augustus, M. G. L. Cooley (ed.), (London: LACTOR, 2003), pp. 203ff; 311ff; 377ff

I. Leins, Treasure Activity Book (London: British Museum Press, 2003)

I. Leins, Coin Hoards from Roman Britain XI, with R. Abdy and J. Williams, (London: Royal Numismatic Society Special Publications 36, 2002)

 
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