It seems to me that many British Roman coin hoard discoveries in recent years result from farmers, or equipment operators working in fields (and occasional amateur metal detectorists) digging up (mostly glazed) earthen ware vessels containing relatively small amounts of coins possibly buried by anxious merchants or landowners to protect their savings (no banks in those days) and never retrieved due to the owner's death, etc. As a boy I used to scour the earth for coins (and any other small artifacts) around Ribchester (Roman Fort/Town) which was very close to my home and during visits to sections of Hadrian's Wall -- especially after heavy rains which usually exposed the soil sub-surface. All I ever found was a very heavily corroded thin metal disk with any markings completely obliterated -- it could have been a coin dropped by a Roman soldier -- or a ha'penny or token lost by a Victorian tourist etc. I think the acidic soil (containing vegetative debris such as peat and heather) that is common in those regions contributed greatly to the deterioration.
Many UK hoards have been published in "Coin hoards from Roman Britain" (CHRB) below are volumes that LRB people might find interesting. I did not list anything about volumes 4 and 6 because I have heard that there are not any LRB hoards in them. I did not list every hoard in each volume as some have numerous hoards, for example vol 12 has 55 hoards. CHRB 1. Chorleywood hoard 4,358 coins mid-4th 330-348 Hamble hoard 2,494 A.D. 330- 335 CHRB 2. Bicester hoard 440 coins A.D. 317- 348 CHRB 3. Blackmoor Hoard 29,773 coins circa A.D. 293 CHRB 4. --- CHRB 5. Has some LRB hoards, but I don’t know which ones. CHRB 6. --- CHRB 7. several LRB hoards, mostly Constantinian. 18 hoards in total, the largest is the Cae Bardd of 4716 plus 271 coins ending A.D. 328 CHRB 8. 18 hoards, the main one and focus of the book is “The Normanby Hoard of Roman 3rd Century Antoninianii” 47,898 third century radiates A.D. 253- 284 CHRB 9. Chalfont Hoard 6,628 coins, mostly debased ants from the later 3rd century. CHRB 10. 60 hoards, at least 20 of interest to LRB enthusiasts. Chapmanslade had 5,200 to A.D. 337 CHRB 11. early Imperial period through AD 235 CHRB 12. 55 hoards, maybe half would be of interest to LRB collectors…most famous are Langtoft II of 923 coins ending in the 320’s and the Grassmoor Hoard of 1422 coins ending in A.D. 340 CHRB 13. Gloucester Hoard over 15,000 coins A.D. 270- 293. Includes two smaller hoards of Carausius and Allectus.
Additional (more complete) information: A typical discovery of recent times is the Killingholme hoard which was unearthed by metal detectorists in 1993 near the village of Killingholme, which is situated on the south bank of the Humber estuary in northeast England. The find consisted of over 3000 Constantinian bronze reduced folles mainly from Western Empire mints including that of London. In the absence of banks, citizens throughout the geographical territory of the Roman Empire hoarded their money -- coins -- in a safe location adjacent to their dwellings or places of business. The most common method of storage was burial in the ground in some form of (often glazed) earthenware container. A great number of these hoards remained in their secret hiding places as their owners perished due to warfare, random violence or illness. Hoards are constantly being unearthed -- and have been throughout the intervening years -- sometimes by accident, sometimes by design, throughout the geographical confines of the ancient Roman world. Because of the way in which such hoards were stored, the coins are often in excellent condition. Numerous hoards have been discovered by farmers plowing fields or digging wells. The 20th century was particularly rich in such discoveries due to extensive archaeological work in general and as a result of increased road and building construction in previously remote areas due to expanding population growth. In addition, many hoards have been unearthed in formerly investigated areas due to the increased digging depth of modern excavation equipment. Sizable coin hoards have regularly been unearthed within the geographical boundaries of Roman Britain throughout the years. The following online references and resources relate to coin finds -- definitions, reporting procedures and dispositions: British Portable Antiquities Scheme Treasure Act of 1996: Code of Practice (2nd Revision) (PDF Document) -- The primary UK Government document -- relates to coins containing at least 10% gold or silver by weight and that are at least 300 years old when found. Summary of the Treasure Act Roman Britain Coin Hoards
Amazing stuff. Imagine finding a hoard of thousands of coins. It's particularly interesting that the coins are often mid third century and later when the imperial authorities were unable to preserve law and order, there was rampant inflation, and increasing warfare. I've read about the government increasingly levying taxation in kind as time passed, getting on into the late 4th and early fifth centuries C.E. Of course the legions were pulled away around the year 410 and Britain was left to its own devices.
Follow this link for some very interesting information relating to coins, Hadrian's wall, Julia Domna (wife of Septimius Severus) and Caracalla resulting from recent excavation work in Britain (includes several pics). http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4553688/Roman-bathhouse-discovered-Cumbria-cricket-site.html
