Metal Detectorist Discovers Black Death Period Coins

An English metal detectorist has discovered two rare gold coins dating back to the 14th century.

As Stuart Anderson reports for the Eastern Daily Press, the treasure hunter unearthed the coins in Reepham, a small town in southwest England, in 2019. Together, both coins are worth an estimated $16,650 and someone “at the top of society” probably owned them, writes BBC News.

“It seems likely that both coins went into the ground at the same time, either as part of a purse loss or as part of a concealed hoard,” the United Kingdom’s Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) notes in a statement. One of the finds was a 23-karat gold leopard, which was minted in 1344, and the other coin was a type of noble, which was minted in 1351 or 1352. Both pieces portray Edward III, who tried to bring gold coinage to England in 1344.

These finds were particularly notable because “hardly any have survived,” notes BBC News. “Almost none survived because they were all pulled back in and reminted, and this is the first time that we know of that one has been found with another coin,” Geake tells the Eastern Daily Press. “It implies that this leopard is either in circulation or being held onto by someone who thinks it is worth it, which is weird behavior.”

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/metal-detectorist-discovers-black-death-period-coins-180978065/