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left obverse and right reverse of the silver denarius from Rome, dated 113-112 BC. Source: American Numismatic Society

Coin Reveals Ancient Rome’s Fight Against Voter Intimidation

David B. Hollander /The Conversation This silver denarius, minted over 2,000 years ago , is hardly the most attractive Roman coin. And yet, the coin is vital evidence for the early stages of a...
A substantial cache of Kamakura period coins was excavated in Gunma Prefecture	Source: Maebashi city government

100,000 Kamakura Coins From First Unified Chinese Kingdom Found in Japan

A massive cache of 100,000 ancient coins has been unearthed during construction activities in central Japan’s Maebashi City, including a rare example of the ‘Ban Liang’, China’s inaugural unified...
50 BC coin bearing the name Esunertos, a previously unknown Iron Age British king.	Source: Spinks Auctions

A New Iron Age King in Britain? Gold Coin Found Stamped with the Name 'Esunertos'

Britain’s history may have just undergone a significant addition, thanks to the remarkable discovery of a coin bearing the name of a forgotten Iron Age ruler. The coin was unearthed by a metal...
Archaeologist found ruins of the lost city of Titiakos, dating back to more than 2000 years ago, in Deza, Soria in Spain. Source: (Perez, E.S. et all/ Archaeological & Anthropological Sciences)

The Lost City of Titiakos: Ruins of Celtiberian Stronghold From 2,000 Years Ago Discovered in Spain

In the midst of excavations in north-central Spain’s Soria province, archaeologists stumbled upon the remarkable discoveries of a Roman camp and the ruins of the 2,000-year-old ancient Celtiberian...
Coin of King Alfred and King Ceolwulf II. Source: anglosaxon.archeurope

Stolen Viking Coin Hoard Worth £800,000 Sold to Undercover Police Officers in Britain

Real-life events can be just as dramatic as any fiction, as evidenced by the tale of stolen Viking coins, an undercover sting, and two men protesting their innocence. Collectors Craig Best and Roger...
The hoard of fifteen tetradrachm were found in a wooden container lined with sheepskin and cloth (Israel Antiquities Authority)

Coins Minted by Egyptian King Ptolemy VI Found in Desert Cave

Archaeologists in the Judean desert have unearthed a small wooden box lined with sheepskin and a purple cloth. Within it, they discovered fifteen rare coins minted by Egyptian King Ptolemy VI,...
A Pompeii brothel mural.

Spintriae, The Roman Sex Coins That Showed What Was on The Menu

There is a curiosity that belongs to ancient Roman history which historians are yet to solve; there exists a collection of Roman brass coins or tokens that depict sexual acts on one side and a...
A 1,800-year-old Roman coin portraying the goddess Luna was recovered from the Israeli Mediterranean. Source: Dafna Gazit / Israel Antiquities Authority

Rare Roman Coin Portraying Moon Goddess Luna Retrieved from Israeli Waters

A rare and beautiful bronze coin from the reign of Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius, who ruled as emperor between 138 and 161 AD, has been discovered off the coast of Haifa in Israel. The 1,850-year-old...
The gold Ides of March coin going on auction which was minted to commemorate the assassination of Julius Caesar. Source: Numismatica Ars Classica

Gold Coin Minted by Assassins of Julius Caesar To Sell For Millions

A remarkable artifact from the final days of a decaying Roman Republic is going on auction in Zurich, Switzerland on May 30th 2022. It is expected to be sold for an impressive amount of money,...
The Henry III gold coin was found in a Devon field.	 Source: Spink & Son

Henry III Gold Coin Sells for $729,000!

An amateur metal detectorist prospecting on farmland in Hemyock, Devon, in the southwest of England, made a staggering windfall find of what is believed to be one of England’s first gold coins. The...
Images of the English coin minted sometime between 1493 and 1499 and discovered at the Cupids Cove Plantation Provincial Historic Site in 2021. Source: Government of Newfoundland and Labrador

Silver Coin from Henry VII’s Reign is Oldest English Coin Found in Canada

Newfoundland is a large island off the east coast of Canada. Recently archaeologists discovered a silver coin there which was minted during the reign of the first monarch of the House of Tudor, Henry...
Newly discovered silver Viking artifacts discovered on the Isle of Man Source: Manx National Heritage

Ancient Silver “Piggybank” Adds to Viking History Isle of Man

A metal detectorist with a nose for Viking era artifacts has struck gold again. Or more precisely, struck silver. These discoveries have helped to spark a renewed interest in the Viking history of...
Replica of Fet Mats Israelsson, Falu Grava Visitors Center, Falun, Sweden. (Tidsspegeln) Inside Falun copper mine. (bluecoomassie/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

The Mummified Miner: Fet Mats Israelsson and His Unfortunate Demise

Mining is an industry that really doesn’t sound all that entertaining or enigmatic. Rocks, drills, and pickaxes - not much happens in the world of a miner. But when it does - it tends to be...
The discovery of an Arabic coin in a Rhode Island orchard provides clues about the escape of the notorious fugitive Captain Every

Rare Arabic Coin Provides Clue in Disappearance of Fugitive Pirate

Henry Every (Avery) was a brutal English pirate who operated in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans in the mid-1690s. Assuming the names “Jack,” “Benjamin Bridgeman,” and “Long Ben,” in 1695 AD Capt...
The Shining History of Gold: From Ancient Treasure to Modern Tech

The Shining History of Gold: From Ancient Treasure to Modern Tech

Gold is arguably the human race’s most valued commodity and a lot could be written about the history of this metal. The luster, beauty, resistance to tarnishing, malleability, and overall brilliance...
Birka: The Mysterious Demise of a Majestic Viking Trading Center

Birka: The Mysterious Demise of a Majestic Viking Trading Center

The Viking Age in Europe brought a lot of key events and innovations, and greatly shaped the future of things that were to come. But there is a popular misconception that the Vikings were all about...
Metal Detectorist Discovers Ultra-Rare Chinese Coin in England

Metal Detectorist Discovers Ultra-Rare Chinese Coin in England

An English metal detectorist hunting for treasure in Hampshire recently unearthed something rare and startling. While scouring a field near the bucolic village of Buriton, where medieval artifacts...
The worn cast copper alloy Chinese coin, from the Northern Song dynasty (960 AD to 1127 AD), minted during the Xining reign between 1068 and 1077 AD, and found in Britain

Out of Place Chinese Coins Prompt Wonder: Did Medieval Asia and Britain Interact?

Britain’s antiquities experts have mostly written them off as a loss from a curated collection, but the presence of two Chinese Northern Song dynasty (960 - 1127 AD) coins unearthed at separate sites...
traditional craftsman creates silver money

Desperate, The Tribes of Israel Turned to "Fake Silver"

Iron Age silver forgeries have been identified by a team of Israeli researchers. This might illustrate the economic hardships of the Tribes of Israel and their decision to make fake silver...
Tudor coins discovered in surprising hoard in the garden of a house in the New Forest, Hampshire. Source: The Trustees of the British Museum.

47,000 U.K. Pandemic Finds, But This Tudor Coin Hoard Is King!

Around 47,000 historical finds have been recorded with the British Museum’s Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) scheme in 2020. According to finds.org , 6,251 of the lost artifacts were reported during...
How A Roman Sacred Site Became A 300-AD Tile And Brick Factory

How A Roman Sacred Site Became A 300-AD Tile And Brick Factory

It’s always surprising when you read that a sacred site was “abandoned” for commercial opportunity. But it happens! UK researchers have determined that a large sacred site and Roman villa complex in...
Impressive Roman Military Base Found in Serbian Cornfield

Impressive Roman Military Base Found in Serbian Cornfield

Archaeologists in Serbia have found a Roman military base. Unlike many others, it was not found buried beneath a modern city, but in a rural location. This means that it can help experts to have a...
Rare Coin Celebrating Caesar’s Assassination Might Fetch £5 Million

Rare Coin Celebrating Caesar’s Assassination Might Fetch £5 Million

Minted as a “naked and shameless” celebration of Julius Caesar's murder by a blade-wielding team of conspiratorial Roman senators in 42 BC, this solid gold ‘assassination coin’ is one of only three...
The brain was found wrapped in aluminum foil on the shore of Lake Michigan in the USA. Source: James Senda

Sherlock Holmes and the Foil Covered Brain of Lake Michigan

On Tuesday morning, Jimmy Senda, a 47-year-old construction worker and part-time artist from Racine, U.S.A., was strolling along the shore of Lake Michigan at Samuel Myers Park in search of sea glass...

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