The Bredgar Hoard is a Roman coin hoard found in Bredgar, Kent in 1957. It consisted of 34 gold aurei , the latest of which were from 41 to 42 AD. [1] The coins are in the British Museum. [2]
The hoard was discovered by Bryan Hollands, who was digging foundations for his bungalow in Gore Road, Bredgar. The coins consisted of one Julius Caesar, twelve Augustus, seventeen Tiberius, one Nero Drusus, and three Claudius aurei. [3] The coins were buried in about 43 AD, the year of the Roman invasion of Britain. [4] It may have represented the savings of a Roman officer who was killed in the Battle of the Medway. [5]
The Battle of the Medway took place in 43 AD, probably on the River Medway in the lands of the Iron Age tribe of the Cantiaci, now the English county of Kent. Other locations for the battle have been suggested but are less likely. This was an early battle in the Claudian invasion of Britain, led by Aulus Plautius.
Sponsianus, also known in English as Sponsian, may have been a Roman usurper during the third century. His existence is implied by a series of coins bearing his name, ostensibly part of a hoard excavated in the eighteenth century. No corresponding figure named Sponsianus is mentioned in any ancient sources, and the coins are widely believed to be the work of modern forgers. A study of wear marks on the coins published in November 2022 concluded that the coins were authentic, supporting Sponsian's existence as a historical figure. However, the study's methodology and conclusions have been criticized by a number of scholars.
The British Museum Department of Coins and Medals is a department of the British Museum involving the collection, research and exhibition of numismatics, and comprising the largest library of numismatic artefacts in the United Kingdom, including almost one million coins, medals, tokens and other related objects. The collection spans the history of coinage from its origins in the 7th century BC to the present day, and is representative of both Eastern and Western numismatic traditions.
The Hallaton Treasure, the largest hoard of British Iron Age coins, was discovered in 2000 near Hallaton in southeast Leicestershire, England, by volunteers from the Hallaton Fieldwork Group. The initial find was made by Ken Wallace on 19 November 2000, when he found about 130 coins with a metal detector.
The Cunetio Hoard, also known as the Mildenhall Hoard, is the largest hoard of Roman coins found in Britain. It was discovered in 1978 at the site of the Roman town of Cunetio, near modern-day Mildenhall, Wiltshire, and consisted of 54,951 low value coins. The coins were contained in a large pot and a lead container. The coins are now in the British Museum and the pot is on display at the Wiltshire Museum in Devizes.
The Beaurains Treasure is the name of an important Roman hoard found in Beaurains, a suburb of the city of Arras, northern France in 1922. Soon after its discovery, much of the treasure was dispersed, to be sold on the antiquities market. The largest portion of the hoard can be found in the local museum in Arras and in the British Museum.
The Canterbury Treasure is an important late Roman silver hoard found in the city of Canterbury, Kent, south-east England, ancient Durovernum Cantiacorum, in 1962, and now in the Roman Museum, Canterbury, Kent. Copies of the main items are also kept in the British Museum.
The Boscoreale Treasure is a large collection of exquisite silver and gold Roman objects discovered in the ruins of the ancient Villa della Pisanella at Boscoreale, near Pompeii, southern Italy. Consisting of over a hundred pieces of silverware, as well as gold coins and jewellery, it is now mostly kept at the Louvre Museum in Paris, although parts of the treasure can also be found at the British Museum.