2,000-year-old hundreds of gold and silver coins found in Netherlands

“A unique combination” of Roman and British coins was uncovered in the Netherlands, highlighting the importance of Lower Germanic Limes in the Roman’s quest to conquer Britannia.

Never before has such a discovery been made on the European mainland. The largest collection of Roman coins ever found in Utrecht exemplifies the riches that soldiers carried with them after the first battles to win Britannia.

Four hundred and four silver and gold coins feature a splendid array of portraits of Julius Caesar, Emperor Claudius, and even Juba, a Northern African king.

Given their composition and final resting place, the coins reveal a fascinating angle on Roman history as Britannia was falling within the empire’s hold, marking its limits also. They were found along the “Limes,” the border of Roman territory and the Germanic tribes with fortification points, suggesting the route that the Roman troops took to return home, thus supporting their initiatives.

Now, the coins have made their rightful way to the National Archaeology Collection for viewership.

Freshly minted coins from the past, did a soldier bury them for safekeeping?

Discovered in the autumn of 2023 by a couple of metal detectorists, Anton Cruysheer from the Archeology Reporting Point of Landschap Erfgoed Utrecht confirmed that the coins were indeed historical relics with an unusual make-up.

Subsequently, an excavation was conducted to glean why they might have been left in that location, as the coins were nowhere near major Roman sites such as Trajecum (Utrecht) and Ulpia Noviomagus (Nijmegen).

Archaeologists cannot confirm why 404 coins of mixed origin were buried. According to a recent press release, they suspect that Roman troops had confiscated British coins, which they carried alongside currency. They could have even offered the treasure to the Gods for a safe passage, suggesting that the riches that they collected were nothing short of impressive.

According to a press release, the “youngest” gold and silver Roman coins minted in the years 46-47 were stamped with the portrait of Emperor Claudius. At that time, the Romans had made their advance into Britannia. Though they appear gold, forty-four coins called “staters” are actually made of gold, silver, and copper. As they were made around the time of the conquests, they bear the name of the British king: Cunobelinus.

A staggering 288 pieces, however, originate from 200 BCE to 47 AD with the stamp of Julius Caesar and Juba, the king of Numidia in modern-day Algeria. Seventy-two Roman gold coins known as aurei, dating from 19 BC to 47 AD, were in such pristine gleaming condition that they must have been freshly minted, almost as if archaeologists reached directly into the past.

Now on view in Leiden

National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden purchased 381 of 404 coins for their permanent exhibition in the department of The Netherlands in Roman Times.

The coins raise intriguing questions about how a Roman soldier might have acquired this collection— payment or force or both? They also offer an extremely specific lens onto Roman economic and military history at the onset of a significant campaign, a press release concludes.