Roman coin hoard found from Cuijk, The Netherlands

[Virilis]

Just heard it from the finnish news! They have found a roman treasure in Netherlands, coins etc. Is this true?

[Robert Vermaat]

Yes it is.



Cuijk, along the Meuse river, apparently the largest hoard in The Netherlands ever.

Third century. Dating to the time of Elagabalus, c. 220 AD
A 20 cm high vessel filled with coins and jewellery, or so the text of the message said. See the X-ray on the image above.

It's not been on TV or anything, how did you hear?

Links in Dutch:
http://www.gelderlander.nl/maasland/article826057.ece
http://www.haarlemsdagblad.nl/article1133806.ece
http://archeonet.nl/index.php?itemid=10057

[Praefectusclassis]

Yes, this from Archeonet:

In Cuijk is één van de grootste Romeinse muntschatten gevonden die ooit in Nederland is aangetroffen. De vondst werd gedaan bij archeologisch onderzoek in een toekomstige woonwijk.

De schat zit in een 20 centimeter hoge pot. Op röntgenfoto's zijn leren zakjes te zien met munten en enkele sieraden. De munten zijn waarschijnlijk allemaal van zilver.

In het laboratorium is begonnen met het leegmaken van de pot en het schoonmaken van de inhoud. De eerste munt dateert uit de regeerperiode van Elagabalus, de Romeinse keizer die heerste van 218 tot 222 CE.

"One of the largest Roman coin hoards ever found in the Netherlands has been dug up in Cuijk (S. of Nijmegen). The find was made during investigations prior to building a new block of houses.
A pot 20 cm high was found. On Xray photos of the pot leather pouches can be seen which contain coins and jewlery. The coins are probably all silver.
Work has begun on emptying the jar and cleaning its contents in the lab. The oldest coin dates to the reign of Elagabal/Heliogabalus, the Roman emperor from 218 to 222 AD."

[Virilis]

How did you hear?

I just heard it on the news ten minutes ago from the radio...

[aitor iriarte]

I WANT TO SEE THOSE LEATHER POUCHES!!!
I'm a hopeless crank, I know!

Aitor

[Robert Vermaat]

Yeah I know.

A larger image:



The site with the vessel:



A coin:



The link in Dutch:
http://www.planet.nl/planet/show/id=434 ... /sc=e07b40

Translation:

In Cuijk a spectacular currency treasure from the Roman time has been found. The treasure consists of at least two hundred Roman coins and has been then hidden in a 20 cm high earthenware pot. The vessel was buried somewhere after 220 AD in a pot-hole in the ground and had been covered with a reversed half pitcher for a lid.

The contents of the pot will be extracted slowly by means of laboratory research from the pot and will be cleaned, a job that will probably take six months still six to accomplish. The first one which has been examined already is a silver coin which was struck during the government of the Roman emperor Elagabalus, around 220 AD. On X-ray pictures three concentrations of coins can be seen, most likely all of silver coins, which were packed in leather pouches. Some jewels are also seen on these X-ray pictures, especially a bracelet and a finger ring.

During the recovery of the pot it appeared that the object was exactly placed on a spot where lightning had struck. Closer research must determine if there is a direct link between lightning trace, for example if the pot had been buried as a sacrifice, or that it was hidden by the occupants of the Roman settlement, or that the hoard was hidden here by pure coincidence in fear of plunderers.

Large treasures like these are not frequently found on excavations. The majority of such treasures is found by chance, as a result of which the story behind the burial remain unclear. This find is one of the largest Roman coin treasures which have been found during scientific archaeological research in the Netherlands.

[LUCIUS ALFENUS AVITIANUS]

Marvellous!

I want to see the jewelry!

Are the same number of coins in each pouch? Sometimes scholars said a coin pouch was used as a valour unit.

By the way, looking picture, seems a casual finding, or is inside a archeological dig?

[Robert Vermaat]

No pictures of the jewellery yet, no info on the number of coins either, I guess that can only be concluded after the vessel has been emptied - a few months of patience!

By the way, looking picture, seems a casual finding, or is inside a archeological dig?

The text says it was a regular dig.

[Praefectusclassis]

Which is not strange as the Netherlands are being Johnny-be-good and seem to follow the Malta treaty pretty much. So all building sites are first probed/examined by local archaeologists to determine the status of the ground. Here in Nijmegen that means that the city archaeologist is almost continually busy!

[Robert Vermaat]

Here in Nijmegen that means that the city archaeologist is almost continually busy!

Does that really mean they probe a 100% of the site? Where I live they first decide which part of the site is 'promising', after which that part is probed, not fully researched.

[Praefectusclassis]

Yes, it starts with archive research, I believe, then some soundings and if they indicate it, a full dig.

[LUCIUS ALFENUS AVITIANUS]

At my city, Tarragona, it's the same.

First, we make some little excavations, and if there were positive, then dig ALL the zone.

In fact, it's my daily work... :roll:

[Jona Lendering]

The coins of Cuyk are not the town's only claim to archaeological fame. What to think of the Roman bridge? (more...)

[IMP GALLIENVS AVG]

I wonder what the reverse of the Elagabalus denarius is? Do we have any new or pics of the reverse?

Andrew

[Robert Vermaat]

I wonder what the reverse of the Elagabalus denarius is? Do we have any new or pics of the reverse?

Thy wish is my command: