A small ceramic pot unearthed by authorized metal detectorists in a forest near Bochnia in southern Poland has been found to contain more than 600 silver coins and four gold ducats from the 15th century.
When the vessel was first discovered by members of the Bochnia Treasure Hunters’ Association STATER on March 16th, three loose coins fell out of the top, all silver denarii minted by Casimir IV Jagiellon, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania (r. 1447-1492). The pot had some minor damage to the rim, but the rest of it was intact and more coins were visible under the thin layer of soil.
The find was immediately reported to the Tarnów delegate of the Voivodiship Office for the Protection of Monuments in Krakow. Archaeologists from the Voivodiship and the Stanisław Fischer Museum in Bochnia retrieved the pot. Experts at the AGH University of Kraków, the top technical university in Poland, were employed to carefully excavate the contents of the pot without damage.
When they first unearthed the vessel, the finders speculated that there could be maybe 100 coins inside. It turns out they far underestimated the little pot’s capacity.
[S}tudies at AGH University in Kraków have revealed the hoard’s full contents.
This includes 592 silver Jagiellonian denarii, 26 silver half-groschen in two size variants, and four gold ducats minted during the reign of Sigismund of Luxembourg, who ruled as Holy Roman Emperor and King of Hungary and Bohemia from 1387 to 1437.
The gold ducats were wrapped in linen, tied with string, and stacked beneath the silver coins, an arrangement tomographic studies confirm was intentional.
Experts say the hoard indicates that the Bochnia area was once a vibrant hub of trade and economic activity.
The ceramic vessel and the coins will now be conserved at the Stanisław Fischer Museum where they will go on permanent display when the work is complete.
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