Norwegian Jan Gunnar Fugelsnes reveals ancient coins he found under a church 60 years ago

A Norwegian man recently came forward and revealed that he found several medieval coins as a child and hid them for six decades – until now.

Jan Gunnar Fugelsnes told Møre og Romsdal county officials that he and his brother were walking under the floorboards of Edøy Church in 1964 when he found the coins.

The boys had crawled under the church’s floor, which had been hollowed out by Nazi soldiers during World War II to store ammunition.

Fugelsnes, who described his underground venture as a “treasure hunt,” brought home 14 silver coins.

“He packed them neatly into a yellow Kodak slide box, and there they sat until the fall of 2023,” the county website says.

Fugelsnes said he had no idea at the time how old the coins were.

According to a press release translated into English, archaeologists believe the coins came from the Middle Ages.

“We were still children searching for treasure under the church and didn’t know how rare the coins were,” explained Fugelsnes.

“We also found three fittings, an amber bead and nine needles that day.”

“I think the coins may have come from the collection that may have been merged with the church at some point in the past,” he added.

“After all, Edøy church has burned several times.”

Carl-Fredrik Wahr-Hansen Vemmestad, who works as a district archaeologist for Møre og Romsdal, said that some of the coins date back to the 13th century.

Some of the coins may date from the reign of Magnus VI, who was King of Norway until 1280.

A “newer” coin in the collection dates from the reign of Christian I, who ruled Norway from 1450 to 1481.

“The location and composition of the coins and objects suggest that they could come from a burial mound that dates back to the Middle Ages between around 1200-1300,” Vemmestad said.

The needles are believed to date from the 13th century and may have been part of a corpse’s clothing. The amber bead probably came from a prayer wreath.

Vemmestad called the items “incredibly rare.”

“Elsewhere in central Norway there are literally only a handful of such coins that have survived to this day,” Vemmestad said.

“The coins provide a unique insight into the Middle Ages in Edøy.”

In Norway, all coins produced before 1650 are considered state property – unless they were privately owned before 1905.

Therefore, Fugelsnes handed over the coins to the Møre og Romsdal county municipality, where they will be kept for the coming years.

“We are very pleased that Jan Gunnar let us take delivery of these coins so that they can be safely stored and secured for the future,” said Vemmestad.

Fox News Digital has reached out to Møre og Romsdal County Council for comment.