A shocking 252 Viking silver coins were uncovered in Jutland, Denmark’s oldest town. The coins are very rare, with only 11 other ever being found worldwide.
The Find
The discovery was made in August 2018. A man was on a treasure hunt, searching through the wetland area of Jutland. Metal detector in hand, he walked around the wetlands and found around 16-18 coins. He decided to contact the Museum of Southwest Jutland to let them know about his find.
The curators at the museum were excited to hear this, since only 11 had been found previously. Upon further search of the area, archaeologists were amazed to find a total of 252 coins, which includes the 16-18 found by the man with the metal detector.
The Coins
Because the coins have been in the wetlands, in wet conditions, the metal was preserved to the point where the coins looked like they had just been minted. This made it a lot easier for the them to read and identify the markings on the silver Viking coins.
The coins are Danish and appear to have been minted for trade in Ribe’s market. Archaeologists will continue to study this lot of coins for more information on coin production techniques used and the history it may reveal.