Archaeologists discover 850-year-old treasure in old grave: “Sensational find”
Swedish archaeologists recently uncovered a 12th-century tomb during an archaeological excavation – and found buried treasure inside.
Jönköping County Museum announced the find in a March 27 press release that was translated from Swedish into English. The discovery came during the excavation of a grave in an ancient church on Visingsö, a Swedish island.
The coins were found in the grave of a man who experts believed was between 20 and 25 years old when he died. The metal pieces were made between 1150 and 1180.
“My colleague Kristina Jansson and I found two skeletons in the shaft where the wires were supposed to be laid,” project manager Anna Ödéen said in a statement. “We cleaned up the bones of those buried to get an idea of what the graves looked like.”
A strange stone was discovered during the sea search, which turns out to be ancient combat equipment
“Suddenly three silver coins appeared! We soon discovered that there were many more lying near the victim’s left foot.”
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A total of 170 silver bracteates were found. A bracteate is a thin, coin-shaped piece of metal that was used as jewelry.
While some may see the find as just old metal, Swedish historians say the find is significant to their field.
“The find is very special, partly because there are few similar finds from this period, and partly because some of the coins from before this period are completely unknown,” the museum said.
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What amazed archaeologists is the fact that the coins were found in a Christian grave. It was not common for early medieval Christians to be buried with a hoard of coins.
“It is rare for discoveries to be made in Christian graves, this custom dates back to prehistoric times and that makes the Visingsö find special,” the press release says. “Why this man in his twenties brought all these coins to the grave is still unknown.
“The archaeologists at the district museum hope to find further clues as they continue to work on the find.”
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A Swedish coin expert told the museum the find was “completely sensational.”
“It is a completely sensational find that will change early medieval coinage history in Götaland and shed light on a period that is largely completely unknown,” Eeva Jonsson of the Royal Coin Cabinet said in a statement.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Jönköping County Museum for further details, but none were available.
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Original source of the article: Archaeologists discover 850-year-old treasure in old grave: “Sensational find”
