Britain's oldest gold coin hoard

Stephen Eldridge discovered 12 2,173-year-old Iron Age gold coins on farmland in Buckinghamshire, valued at around £30,000.

Gold coins from the Iron Age. Photo: Spink/BNPS

Experts at the British Museum determined that the gold coins originated from the Catuvellauni tribe living in what is now Picardy, France, and were made in 150 BC, Daily Mail reported on September 26. The Catuvellauni grew to become the most powerful tribe in Britain in the following century.

The coins, discovered by Eldridge in November 2019, are expected to fetch up to £30,000 when they are auctioned by London-based Spink & Son on September 28. X-ray fluorescence analysis confirmed they are about 75% gold with an alloy of silver and copper, revealing the economy in which the first British gold coins were circulated.

“While small gold coins from this period have been found in south-east England, a hoard of this size or date is extremely rare. Local coins from the period were simply minted from a base metal called ‘potin’, so whoever imported this hoard of gold was certainly influential in the region,” said Gregory Edmund, senior specialist at Spink & Son.

It is likely that the gold was brought to England in exchange for mercenaries, equipment and hunting dogs to fight the Romans or other tribes in Belgium, according to Edmund. "A hoard of coins of this quantity and date has never been found in the archaeological record. There is another hoard from this period but only three coins," he said.

The coins show signs of heavy use and were no longer new when they were buried. However, they still retain remarkable details of a rare form of Iron Age art. Many experts believe that the portraits on the coins are deliberately androgynous, despite depicting the male god Apollo. "The feminine style may reflect the political importance of women in Iron Age society, which helped to highlight historical figures such as Cartimandua and Boudicca," Edmund said.

The British Museum has decided not to accept the coins, meaning they will be returned to the finder. Eldridge will split the proceeds with the landowner.

Thu Thao (According to Daily Mail )

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