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ARCHEOLOGY

Farmer finds trove of Roman coins in orchard

More than 4,100 Roman coins from the third century have been unearthed after a farmer found some of them in his cherry orchard, the canton of Aargau says.

Published: 19 November 2015 21:03 CET
Farmer finds trove of Roman coins in orchard
Photo: Canton of Aargau

The farmer in the village of Ueken first stumbled upon the “green-tinged” coins in a mole hill in July, the canton said on Thursday.

He contacted Aargau’s archaeological department, which sent out staff to look at the “exceptionally well preserved” coins.

Over three days in September volunteer researchers found more coins under a search directed by cantonal archaeologist Georg Matter, the canton said in a news release.

A total of 4,166 coins made of bronze and silver were collected in a find that “exceeds all expectations by far — something you experience as an archaeologist rarely more than once in a career,” Matter said in a statement.

It is one of the largest discoveries of ancient coins made in Switzerland — all found within an area of a few square metres.

Archaeologists have already started to examine the coins that date from between 270 and 294 AD.

Coin expert Hugo Doppler has examined 200 of the coins, examples of the so-called Antoniniani used during the third century of the Roman Empire, the canton said.

They bear the images of different emperors, including Aurelian (dating from 270-275), Tacitus (275-276), Probus (276-282), Carinus (283-285), Diocletian (284-305) and Maximianus (286-305).

The coins have a silver content of five percent and are well preserved because they were immediately withdrawn from circulation, Doppler said in a statement.

“The owner must have deliberately chosen to hoard these coins for the silver in them guaranteed a certain value in a time of economic uncertainty.”

Researchers believe the treasure was accumulated over several years and buried in the ground.

While the original value of the coins is difficult to estimate, the experts believe they represented a considerable fortune at the time, “in the order of average earnings for one to two years”.

Research is continuing on the find, made south of the municipality of Frick where a few months earlier parts of a Roman settlement were excavated.

Other Roman remains have been found in the area, also known for its dinosaur discoveries, where the Romans had an iron ore mine.

From the first century BC until 401AD the area covered by present-day Switzerland was part of the Roman empire and vestiges of Roman structures can be found across the country.

Photo: Canton of Aargau

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ARCHEOLOGY

5,000 year-old German skeleton find reveals ancient diet and lifestyle

German researchers are piecing together the life of a prehistoric woman who died more than 5,000 years ago in the Neolithic period, after her skeleton was found during excavation works for wind turbines.

Published: 6 November 2020 09:29 CET
5,000 year-old German skeleton find reveals ancient diet and lifestyle
The skeleton of Lady of Bietikow, discovered in Brandenburg. Photo: DPA

The “Lady of Bietikow,” as she has been named, was found near a village of the same name in northeastern Germany's Uckermark region.

The skeleton had been buried in a settlement in a squatting position, one of the oldest known forms of burial, according to local media.

Investigations have shown that she was between 30 and 45 years old and died more than 5,000 years ago.

That means that she lived during the same period as Oetzi the Iceman, the stunningly preserved corpse found by tourists in the Alps in the 1990s.

READ ALSO: German scientists find runes on ancient comb

“You can compare Oetzi and the Lady of Bietikow in terms of age,” said Philipp Roskoschinski, one of the two archaeologists who made the discovery in the state of Brandenburg, which surrounds Berlin.

Oetzi was found by two hikers in 1991 in the Oetztal Alps on the border between Austria and Italy.

His body was extremely well preserved, with organs, skin and other organic material still intact — researchers were even able to see what he had eaten hours before he died.

The Uckermark region, which is often dubbed the Toscana of northern Germany. Photo: DPA

“The discovery of Oetzi was much more spectacular due to the conditions of preservation,” Roskoschinski said.

All that is left of Lady Bietikow are bones and some fragments of clothing, but researchers have still managed to piece together some details about her life.

It was during the Neolithic period that humans first introduced grains into their diet, since they could be stored more easily than meat and could also be used as a means of payment, according to anthropologist Bettina Jungklaus.

However, this led to a deterioration in people's general health.

This can be seen in the state of the Lady of Bietikow's teeth, which are severely eroded and missing completely in some places, Jungklaus said.

“Normally there is enamel on the surface of the teeth. But here it is heavily worn, chewed off,” she said.

“This allows us to draw conclusions about her diet: it was probably very rich in fibre, very hard. There are certain grains that cause the teeth to wear out easily.”

It remains unclear whether the condition of Lady Bietikow's teeth indicates an illness or even the cause of her death.

Researchers are now hoping to find out more about her life, including whether she came from the Uckermark region or had immigrated there from elsewhere.

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