Two amateur divers find a treasure of gold on holiday in Spain: The unbelievable find dates from the 4th or 5th century.
Alicante – Off the coast of Spain, amateur divers have made an incredible discovery. Luis Lens and César Gimeno only wanted to enjoy the underwater landscape and remove garbage from the sea, but this year they discovered a real treasure while snorkeling and diving.
Both men spend their family holidays every year in Xàbia, a popular resort on the Spanish Mediterranean coast. There they often use their time to snorkel and free dive. Their technical equipment consists of “swimming trunks, mask, snorkel and fins,” as Lens told the Spanish newspaper El Pais.
Divers find hidden treasure: gold coins from the Roman Empire
Lens and Gimeno also went diving in Portitxol Bay on August 23, 2021. At a depth of about seven meters they then saw something light up on a rock. At first, Lens thought he had found a 10-cent coin. But what the two amateur divers discovered turned out to be a real gold treasure.
On the shiny object, the two men noticed an inscription with an ancient Greek or Roman face and assumed that it came from a piece of jewelry. Enthusiastic about their find, the men looked for more gold objects – and discovered a total of seven more coins in a crevice.
Luis Lens and César Gimeno reported their find to the local authorities, who then started another search. A total of 53 gold coins, three nails and the remains of a chest were discovered on the sea floor. “It is one of the largest sets of Roman gold coins found in Spain and Europe,” explains Jaime Molina, head of the underwater archaeological team at the University of Alicante. According to an analysis, the gold coins date from the end of the 4th and the beginning of the 5th century.
Gold coins discovered in the sea: “Every child’s dream to find a treasure”
The Molina team has been conducting surveys in Portitxol Bay for three years. Since there is no evidence of sunken ships, he assumes that the coins were hidden – presumably out of fear of looting by the Alans, reports El Pais. According to the historian, the coins could provide a lot of new information to understand the final phase of the fall of the Western Roman Empire.
Since the coins are very well preserved, the researchers were able to identify the depicted emperors on some coins, including Valentinian I (3 coins), Valentinian II (7 coins), Allan I (15 coins), Arcadi (17 coins ) and Honorius (10 coins).
“It’s incredible. It is every child’s dream to find treasure, ”Luis Lens told El Pais about his gold discovery. The coins are now being restored and then exhibited in the Soler Blasco Archaeological and Ethnographic Museum in Xàbia, the University of Alicante announced. A gold treasure was stolen from the University of Göttingen last year, but a bitter disappointment followed for the thieves. (sne) * Hna.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA.
