More than 900 denarii were found together by a metal detectorist in Germany, and it stands among the largest hoards of Roman silver coins ever discovered in the country. Oliver Riedl recovered them from a field near Wesseling, a small city a few miles south of Cologne, roughly a year ago.
The coin collection covers several centuries, with the earliest piece dating to 148 B.C. from the period of the Roman Republic. The majority of the coins were issued during the rule of the Flavian emperors, Vespasian and his two sons, Titus and Domitian, who governed from A.D. 69 to 96. The latest coin in the group was struck in either 124 or 125, during the time of Emperor Hadrian.
The Discovery
Riedl discovered 15 coins before his metal detector indicated that a far larger item was buried beneath the surface. He then stopped digging and contacted the authorities without delay.
“It was clear to me that there was something bigger in the ground here,” Riedl said in a statement from Germany’s Rhineland regional government. “I therefore immediately informed the office.”
The Excavation
The Rhineland regional government moved fast on the find, and archaeologists swiftly uncovered the full hoard of 934 Roman silver coins. The team took the block of earth that held the coins out whole and X-rayed it before opening it up.
The treasure’s weight is close to 7 pounds (3.1 kilograms). It is now on view at the Rhineland Regional Museum in Bonn (LVR-Landesmuseum Bonn).
What the Coins Reveal
The director of archaeology for the Rhineland, Erich Claßen, explained that the original owner gathered most of the coins around A.D. 100, though they were not buried until Hadrian’s time.
“We can only speculate about the motives, but very likely someone wanted to keep this money safe,” he said in the statement. “Banks did not exist at that time.”
Claßen also suggested a reason why the owner never returned, and that reason — “It is possible that the owner died beforehand without being able to pass on the knowledge of the coins” — was straightforward.
The Location
A numismatist at the German Historical Museum in Berlin, Marjanko Pilekić, who was not part of the discovery, said the site where the hoard was found holds importance. It was recovered just inside the northern edge of the Roman Empire, a boundary marked by the Roman limes, which ran close to the Rhine.
The email from Live Science, “In this case, we can cautiously assume that the hoard was buried not long after the most recent coin was minted,” was from a source who wrote about the original Jupiter probe being a risky and audacious mission.
According to the Romans, the regions beyond the Empire were known as the “barbarian,” and he said that in those places, such hoards were often buried much later.
How Much the Hoard Was Worth
The hoard’s value in the second century A.D. was substantial. Regional archaeologist Rahel Otte, who led the dig, noted that 300 denarii was the annual salary of a Roman legionary during the reign of Hadrian, with around half of that sum taken away for food and equipment.
That means a legionary “would have had to save all his available money for about six years to accumulate the Wesseling treasure find,” Otte said.
The identity of the person who buried the hoard is uncertain, but they may have resided on one of the Roman estates in the neighborhood.
Related Finds
Other recent discoveries of buried wealth have come to light. A large trove of Roman treasure was uncovered in Germany by someone who used a metal detector without permission, after keeping it concealed for 8 years. A man in Denmark found that country’s biggest Viking Age silver pile in his own yard.
A hobbyist metal detectorist discovered the biggest Viking Age silver trove in Finland, which held thousands of coins and items of jewelry.
Key Facts
- Coins: 934 Roman silver denarii
- Weight: Almost 7 pounds (3.1 kilograms)
- Oldest coin: 148 B.C. (Roman Republic)
- Most recent coin: 124 or 125 (Hadrian’s time)
- Location: Field near Wesseling, a few miles south of Cologne
- Display: Rhineland Regional Museum in Bonn (LVR-Landesmuseum Bonn)
Before excavation, the whole block of earth was taken away intact and subjected to X-ray examination, thereby preserving the coins for display.
Source material: “'There was something bigger in the ground here': Metal detectorist in Germany discovers giant Roman-era hoard from time of emperor Hadrian,” Live Science.
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