Future of 'remarkable' Roman coins hoard found in Worcestershire set to be decided in upcoming months
1,368 Iron Age and Roman gold and silver coins were discovered in the Leigh and Bransford area of the county last year.
A hoard consisting of 1,368 Iron Age and Roman gold and silver coins discovered in Worcestershire, are set to have their future home decided in the upcoming months.
The coins were found gathered into a pot and buried in the ground in the Leigh and Bransford area of the county last year, with the Worcestershire Heritage, Art & Museums charity now wanting to keep them on display in the region.
Museums Worcestershire say they expect the value of the coins to exceed £100,000, and are aiming to raise £6,000 alongside grant funding applications to acquire the collection.
Dr Murray Andrews has been the academic advisor throughout the project, and he says the find was such a remarkable one.
"I've been working with Roman coins for a very long time, and it's not very often someone tells you they've found a pot of more than 1,000 of them in a field in Worcestershire," he said.
"Worcestershire is a part of the world where we traditionally haven't had a great deal of Roman archaeology or heritage there, so it's a kind of unique opportunity to understand aspects of the Roman conquest, and a unique contribution to our archaeological heritage.
"The hoard is dated back as early as 157 BC, and contains coins that span the entirety of the Roman world at the time, so you've got everything from Turkey to Spain, to Northern Africa, right up to the Cotswolds, so it contains pretty much everything you can find from the Roman Empire."
After being discovered by members of the public and reported, it was declared treasure by a Worcestershire coroner in June 2024.
It's believed to be one of the largest coin hoards of the Roman conquest period, and the largest hoard of the reign of Nero, ever found in Britain.