Iron Age golden treasure found with metal detectors

With the help of metal detectors in Wales, for the first time, a gold treasure of the Iron Age, more than two thousand years old, was found.

Gold coins over 2,000 years old have been found by metal detectors in Wales, making them the first Iron Age gold coin hoard to be discovered in this part of the UK.

According to CNN, the 15 coins that have been declared treasures are known as staters. They were found on the Welsh island of Anglesey, off the northwest coast of the mainland.

According to a press release from the National Museum of Wales, the coins minted between 60 and 20 BC belonged to the Korieltawi tribe, who at that time inhabited the geographic area that is now the East Midlands of England.

The precious coins were found by three metal detectors in the field between July 2021 and March 2022.

Lloyd Roberts, who said he’s been working with a metal detector for over 14 years, found the first coin, CNN tells CNN.

“Finding a gold stater has always been number one on my wish list,” he said in a press release, adding, “This one coin would have lasted me my whole year, but I kept looking for another at the next signal.”

Roberts said that his friend Peter Coxton found the next three coins. They then contacted the Portable Antiquities Scheme, which records similar historical and archaeological finds.

Tim Watson, who said he only started looking for treasures with a metal detector after being encouraged by his father during quarantine, found the sixth coin.

“I hurried home to show my wife and we were both delighted with this coin, which was like nothing else I have found, immaculately preserved, with such unusual stylized images,” Watson told the press. -release.

Watson said his enthusiasm led him to upgrade his metal detector, and in the following weeks he found the remaining nine coins.

The elaborate design of the gold coins is borrowed from those of Philip II, who ruled the ancient kingdom of Macedonia from 359 to 336 BC. The obverse side of the coins depicts the wreath and hair of the mythological deity Apollo, while the reverse side depicts a horse with a triangular head surrounded by symbols.

According to the press release, the coins were most likely not used for everyday transactions, except perhaps for some high-value purchases. Instead, staters are believed to have been used as gifts between elites to forge alliances or show loyalty.

Another possibility is that the Korieltawi tribe used them as part of an exchange for copper, which was sourced from various parts of the island.

According to the National Museum of Wales, the figurines may also have been used as “offerings to the gods” to fulfill a vow. Other archaeological finds from Anglesey, as well as Roman sources mentioning the island and featuring pagan priests, suggest that the area was an important religious center at the time.

The Gwynedd Archaeological Foundation visited the site in September 2021 to see if there are any clues as to why the coins were buried there.

“This hoard is a fantastic example of the rich archaeological landscape that exists in northwest Wales,” said Sean Derby, a historic environment archaeologist at the Gwynedd Archaeological Trust. “Although the close proximity of the find did not provide any clues as to the origin of the find, the site of the find lies in an area of ​​known prehistoric and early Roman activity and helps expand our understanding of the region.”

Welsh museum Oriel Mont intends to purchase coins and put them on public display, said CNN.