Coins were minted in England from about 650 AD; from about 900 they were struck regularly and in bigger quantities in diverse mints all over England. At that time, the Royal Mint in London was established, where British coins have been issued ever since. This sceat was probably struck in Kent and dates from the second half of the 7th century. At that time, a large series of sceattas was minted in England; they all show a bust with an aureole on the obverse. The reverse depicts a square standard and the letters VOT XX. For one and a half centuries, such coins were the main currency of the Anglo-Saxons and their neighbors across the English Channel – until the 8th century, when they were displaced by a new coin type: the penny.