Katy Prickett reporting from Norfolk for BBC News brings an exciting discovery of a hoard of 16 silver Roman coins that span two centuries. The denarii, dating from the late Roman Republic to the reign of Marcus Aurelius and his wife Faustina, were unearthed in a field in Barton Bendish, Norfolk. Coin specialist Adrian Marsden estimated that the loss of this hoard might have amounted to “a few hundred quid” for its owner. As a result of this discovery, a treasure inquest is now underway, and there are hopes that King’s Lynn Museum will be able to acquire the collection.
Dr. Marsden, from the Norfolk Historic Environment Service, explained that the hoard contains 200 years’ worth of coins, showcasing the stability of the currency during that time period. The discovery is likened to finding Victorian pennies in the 1960s, despite wear and tear from circulation. The hoard features coins from different eras, with the earliest coin dating back to 57 BC from the Roman Republic. This period marked a transition from a monarch-led government to one led by elected officials, culminating in the start of the Roman Empire in AD 27.
The collection of coins showcases various emperors and their wives, with the most recent denarii dating to AD 175-6. Dr. Marsden speculated on the origins of the hoard, questioning whether it was a result of accidental loss or a deliberate act of hiding wealth in the absence of banks. The area where the coins were found, near King’s Lynn, was known for its prosperity during the Roman period, with a line of villas and the county’s longest Roman road, the Peddars Way, indicating the region’s significance in Roman Britain. The lost coins, while challenging to value in modern terms, likely held significant worth to their owner, possibly equivalent to a few hundred pounds in today’s currency
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