53 Gold Roman Coins (Valentinian II, Theodosius I, Arcadius, Honorius) Found Off Spanish Coast

From the article:

"A group of 53 Roman gold coins have been discovered on the seabed off the coast of Xàbia in Alicante, southeastern Spain. They are gold solidi ranging in date from the late 4th to the early 5th century, and are in such excellent condition that all the coins but one could be identified. There are three solidi from the reign of Emperor Valentinian I, seven from Valentinian II, 15 from Theodosius I, 17 from Arcadius and 10 from Honorius."

 

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Interesting - thank you.

 

It really is a wonderful story. I’m hoping to see more of the coins. Great numismatic find of historical significance.

 

Thank you, again, for posting. I found this section of the article very intriguing:

“The historians point to the possibility that the coins may have been intentionally hidden, in a context of looting such as those perpetrated by the Alans in the area at that time.

Therefore, the find would serve to illustrate a historical moment of extreme insecurity with the violent arrival of the barbarian peoples (Suevi, Vandals and Alans) in Hispania and the final end of the Roman Empire in the Iberian Peninsula from 409 AD.”

 

I assume that the coins had to be given to the government, due to the historical nature of the coins. Are there any other coins like those mentioned already in museums or in some kind of controlled environment.
Was there a finders fee? Since it was found in the water and not outside of the 3 mile limit, the coins belong to Spain. ???

 

The coins are the property of Spain. Where they will end up however is another matter. In the municipal museum, in Alicante, Valencia or Madrid? As one collection or in several lots?
They were found in7 metres of water by two amateurs with only face masks and scuba tubes who were cleaning up rubbish from the bottom, plastics, tins etc. and saw what they first thought was a euro 10 cent coin

 

This article characterizes it as one of the largest hoards ever discovered. At 53 coins, that cannot be the case. Do they mean gold hoards? Or is this typical journalistic exaggeration? At any rate, a wonderful find and welcome coverage.

https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/roman-coins-spain-divers-scli-intl-scn/index.html

 

Interesting find...however, I find this strange for such an article:

"...have been dated to the late Roman period, in particular between the end of the 4th century and the beginning of the 20th century." (direct quote, highlights by me)

I guess inattentive writing & editing permeates all journalistic environments!

 

Wonderful discovery, indeed.

 

I was skeptical (at first) of the assertion that these coins were a hoard hidden from the invading Alans.

I then found these maps from Wikipedia. These were helpful to appreciate the Alan presence in Spain. I would now accept the theory that this hoard “was intentionally hidden,” possibly from an occupation force of Alans.


Kingdom of the Alans in Hispania (409–426 CE).



“Around 409 AD the Alans joined the Vandals and Suebi in crossing the Pyrenees into the Iberian Peninsula, settling in Lusitania and Hispania Carthaginensis. The Iberian Alans, soundly defeated by the Visigothsin 418 AD , subsequently surrendered their authority to the Hasdingi Vandals.”

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alans

 

The folks that found those coins are very honest. I don't know what I would do if I found a hoard of coins. I know what I do when I find a coin on the sidewalk. I just put it in my pocket. Several years ago, we went to a reception for a friend that had just gotten married. On our way to out car, I saw something on the pavement. It turned it to be 3 $20 bills. My wife was with me at the time, so I didn't stick it in my pocket like I normally do with found money. Anyway, we went back to the reception and I got the bride's father and told him what I had found. There was a PA system, so he stopped the music and announced that some currency had been found in the parking lot. No one came forward, so I told him that if he finds out who had dropped the currency, to let me know. That was 10 years ago and I haven't heard anything. Do you think it's all right to keep the money now?

 

It would probably be just safer to send it to me. I’ll make sure the right people get it. And by the right people, I probably mean VCoins.

 

Thanks. Finally, I can get rid of the found money, and give it to one that deserves it the most. Yeah, Right!