With an age of 1,400 years, the craftsmanship and historical significance of the gold coins from the Anglo-Saxon treasure recently discovered in Norfolk, England, are immense, far exceeding the value of the gold that created them.
According to the Evening Standard, the treasure includes 131 gold coins and 4 other gold objects, excavated over a vast area from 2014 to 2020. The coins were revealed when the farmland above them was plowed. An anonymous metal detectorist pursued and collected each artifact.
Some artifacts from the newly announced treasure – (Photo: British Museum)
Most of the coins share the same design, and the other gold objects show signs that they all belong to a single treasure hoard. The official burial site is believed to be near the grave of an ancient ruler in an area known as Sutton Hoo, where the lord—or king—was found in a large ship with a burial treasure worth a fortune.
The Ancient Origins reports that the first coins were actually discovered back in 1991, but it wasn’t until 2014, when additional coins appeared, that people began to take notice.
According to Dr. Adrian Marsden from the Norfolk Environment and History Agency, some coins in the treasure were minted by the Byzantine Empire, but most were produced by the Merovingian dynasty, corresponding to modern-day France. During this period in history, England did not mint its own gold coins, so the money must have been brought from elsewhere in Europe.
Interestingly, these coins share the same design as other coins found in a purse also excavated at Sutton Hoo, suggesting that the entire treasure may belong to an English individual who frequently interacted with the ancient Merovingians.
However, the entire Sutton Hoo site has been plowed and disturbed by agricultural activities over the years, making it quite challenging to determine whether the treasure belonged to the lord in the aforementioned ship burial or to someone else buried nearby.
According to Dr. Gareth Williams, curator of Medieval Coins at the British Museum, this discovery is extremely important and could help reshape our understanding of the economy of early Anglo-Saxon England. If accurately valued, this treasure could be the largest in England.
