Colchester: Coins hoard found after 2,000 years (From Essex County Standard)

Colchester: Coins hoard found after 2,000 years

7:30am Friday 20th May 2011 in News By Wendy Brading

A ROMAN’S hoard of coins, buried under the ground for safe keeping, has been found complete - 2,000 years on.

Archaeologists from the Colchester Archaeological Trust found the cache while they were excavating at Hyderabad barracks off Mersea Road, Colchester.

And while odd coins are often found during digs, this is one of the first times the Trust has found an entire collection.

The hoard of 1,247 coins is made up of antoniniani and the issues are of nine Roman emperors ranging from Gallus, who ruled from 251-3, to Victorinus, AD 269-271.

The experts believe the Roman owner had collected the coins into piles and buried them in a small grey pot for safe keeping.

However, he either then forgot where he put them or died without telling anyone where they were.

For more on this story, see this week's Essex County Standard. Order a copy by phoning 0800 052 1818.