MiddenMonster
Bronze Member
I guess this is the downside of living in the New World--we can never find a cache like this since gold coins didn't exist here until the 15th-16th century. But you still have to feel for the guy who hid these coins in a wall as the Muslim conquest rolled through, clearly hoping to come back and retrieve them some day. Not sure the mindset behind doing that, though. My mindset would have been to take them with me so they could be used to survive. Maybe I should check my "future privilege", though. I don't know what was happening at that precise moment he hid them in the wall. There may have been invaders kicking in doors and this guy finished hiding the coins mere minutes before his door was kicked in and he was killed. Either way, good for future generations and we have two nice pictures and a video of gold coins that will make your mouths water. Two articles, with the first one having an embedded video and the second article having the better of two pictures of the gold coins. But first, let's do a little of that book learnin' math. 44 coins, 170 grams. That works out to about 3.8 grams per coin. I'm not sure how to compensate for the difference between Imperial and Troy weights, but I'm guessing the simple value of each coin is worth between $500 and $1,000 today. The numismatic value, on the other hand is most likely far higher. I wouldn't be surprised if this horde turns out to be worth between $500,000 and $1,000,000. And because the horde was found in Israel, it will never end up in the hands of a private owner.
Buried Treasure Trove of 44 Byzantine Gold Coins Unearthed in Israel
Gold coins hidden in 7th Century found in wall
But I also have to wonder, what would the purchasing power of one of these coins have been in the 7th Century? I'm thinking it would have to be far more than a good meal, but am doubtful it is in the land/house purchase zone. So what could you buy with it? A good horse? A slave? A cargo hold full of wine? Hmmmm...
Buried Treasure Trove of 44 Byzantine Gold Coins Unearthed in Israel
Gold coins hidden in 7th Century found in wall
But I also have to wonder, what would the purchasing power of one of these coins have been in the 7th Century? I'm thinking it would have to be far more than a good meal, but am doubtful it is in the land/house purchase zone. So what could you buy with it? A good horse? A slave? A cargo hold full of wine? Hmmmm...
