The Muddy Hoard is a Roman British coin hoard found in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, dating to approximately the year 274, during the joint reign of Tetricus I, and his son, Tetricus II of the Gallic Empire, a breakaway state of the Roman Empire during the reign of Aurelian.[1]
| "Muddy hoard" | |
|---|---|
 The Hoard in Situ, 2018 | |
| Material | Roman Coins, Roman Pottery |
| Size | Pottery shards, 9724 Roman Coins |
| Created | 274 |
| Discovered | Monday 30th April 2018 - Tuesday 15th May 2018 Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, England |
| Place |
|
| Classification | Treasure |
| Identification | CAM-A0ECFB |
| Culture | Romano-British |
It is considered by far the largest coin hoard in Cambridgeshire County, England.[2]
Declared "Treasure" under the Coroner's Inquest on November 11, 2021, it is exhibited at the Norris Museum in St Ives, Cambridgeshire from September 16, 2023, temporarily for six months, until the museum acquires enough funding for its permanent acquisition.[2][3]
Discovery edit
On April 30, 2018, a metal detectorist in the town of Huntingdon, was searching on private land under the permission of the landowner, where he unearthed a copper-alloy coin. After a few more coins emerged from the ground, the detectorist covered up the find to report it under the Portable Antiquities Scheme, whereupon the find liaison officer of Cambridgeshire, Helen Fowler, and Dr. Andrew Brown of the British Museum conducted a two-day excavation of the hoard.[2][4]
Under the PAS, it is designated CAM-A0ECFB under Treasure Tracking Number 2018T317.[1]
Description edit
The hoard is considered partially disturbed, and was initially discovered scattered out.[1]
It is composed of two ceramic vessels, one inside another, nestled like matryoshka dolls. The outer vessel was a coarse, grey ware vessel, the inner pot made of dark gray, finer clay. It was determined that with the weight of the coins that the inner pot cracked, requiring the addition of the outer pot to contain rest of the stash. The hoard itself was otherwise mostly intact, with no indicating archaeological features surrounding the land.[1][2][4]
After separation of the coins at the British Museum, it was determined to be made of 9724 Roman coins, a mixture of Antoninianii, Barbarous radiates, and 3 denarii, including an unrecorded denarius variant of Tetricus I.[1][2]
The hoard has a high proportion of radiates, which were made during the short supply of official coinage and turbulence of the Gallic Empire, a result of the Crisis of the Third Century. By the time the hoard was buried, Tetricus I surrendered to Aurelian, who then reunited the Roman Empire.[6]
The hoard contains the coinage portraiture of 14 Emperors and 1 Empress.[2]
| Portrait | Date | Number of Coins | Empire |
|---|---|---|---|
| Volusianus | 251-3 | 1 | Central |
| Valerian (emperor) | 253-60 | 8 | Central |
| Valerian/Gallienus (joint reign) | 253-60 | 4 | Central |
| Salonina (joint) | 253-60 | 18 | Central |
| Saloninus | 258-60 | 1 | Central |
| Divus Valerian II | 3 | Central | |
| Gallienus | 260-8 | 859 + 2 denarii | Central |
| Salonina | 260-8 | 76 | Central |
| Claudius II | 268-70 | 766 | Central |
| Divus Claudius II | 132 | Central | |
| Quintillus | 270 | 72 | Central |
| Aurelian | 270-5 | 8 (pre-reform) | Central |
| Unknown | 6 | Central | |
| Postumus | 260-9 | 107 | Gallic |
| Laelian | 269 | 5 | Gallic |
| Marcus Aurelius Marius | 269 | 17 | Gallic |
| Victorinus | 269-71 | 1817 | Gallic |
| Divus Victorinus | 4 | Gallic | |
| Tetricus I | 271-4 | 2981 + 1 denarius | Gallic |
| Tetricus II | 271-4 | 1281 | Gallic |
| Irregular Radiates | 998 | ||
| Unknown Emperors (Fragments) | 6 |
References edit
- ^ a b c d e f Museum, The British; Street, Great Russell; T: +4420 73238618, London WC1B 3DG. "Record ID: CAM-A0ECFB - ROMAN hoard". The Portable Antiquities Scheme. Retrieved 2023-09-22.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ a b c d e f "St Ives museum displays 'muddy hoard' of 9,000 Roman coins". BBC News. 2023-09-16. Retrieved 2023-09-22.
- ^ "Hoard Poster – Norris Museum". Retrieved 2023-09-22.
- ^ a b "Detectorist finds 10,000 Roman coins in Huntingdon hoard". BBC News. 2021-12-19. Retrieved 2023-09-22.
- ^ Museum, The British; Street, Great Russell; T: +4420 73238618, London WC1B 3DG. "Image and metadata for The whole hoard after primary cleaning, August 2019. Labelled to show top, middle, base from lower to upper part of image. 75 bags/coin envelopes in total". The Portable Antiquities Scheme. Retrieved 2023-09-22.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Gallic Empire - Livius". www.livius.org. Retrieved 2023-09-22.