A record-breaking hoard of Viking-era coins has been discovered in Norway
Thousands of Viking-era coins were discovered by chance in the middle of a field in Norway. It is likely part of a buried treasure that its owner never returned to claim. Archaeologists are calling the find one of the largest in the country’s history.
This was reported by NRK.
The first coins were accidentally discovered in a field in the southeastern part of the country near the town of Rena—two people found 19 coins resembling Viking-era currency and reported them to scientists.
Archaeologists note that even 19 coins seemed like “quite a lot” to them, but they could not have imagined that such a unique discovery lay ahead. According to the expedition members, the metal detector beeped literally at every step. On the very first day, 90 coins were unearthed from the upper layers of soil.
In total, 2,900 coins from the late 9th to early 11th centuries were found at the site, all in good condition, along with a piece of a silver buckle. Some were buried up to 30 cm underground, while others were practically sticking out of the ground. The “Mjøstad Hoard” is already being called the greatest Viking Age find in the entire history of Norwegian archaeological research.
Scientists speculate that the scattered coins are from a buried hoard whose owner never returned to retrieve it. There were no human settlements directly at this site.
The coins will be transferred to the museum at the University of Oslo for classification, documentation, and inclusion in the collection.
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