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V11 2008 INDEX
E-SYLUM ARCHIVE
ARTICLE: GOLD COINS OF CARAUSIUS SOUGHT BE BRITISH MUSEUMS
Arthur Shippee forwarded this article following up on a
British coin find earlier this year. -Editor
Gold coins found in the
Ashbourne area and declared "treasure" at an inquest last March have been
given a substantial value.Derby Museum and Art Gallery is now bidding to buy the Roman coins to keep them in Derbyshire, but at present is under some pressure to find the funding.
The two gold coins both date from the third century and were struck in the reign of Carausius (AD 286-93), with only 23 other known examples having been found.
One of the Ashbourne coins (above) caused particular excitement, coming from the London mint, the only known example of its type. There are though 14 other known gold coins from this mint.
The other coin (below left) was minted in Rouen - again very rare - only the 10th gold coin recorded for the mint, but the same as three other known specimens.
Both coins were found in the Ashbourne area by Derrick Fretwell, when he was tidying up after excavation work on his own land.
At first he thought the coin was a button and slipped it into his pocket and it was only later when he washed the dirt off under the tap that he realised it was pristine gold.
Anja Rohde, who shares the post of finds liaison officer at Derby Museum, took in the coins from Mr Fretwell and sent them off to the British Museum where they were described as "extremely rare".
Yesterday Anja Rohde confirmed that the coins had now been valued at the British Museum and negotiations were in progress for acquiring them.
To read the complete article, see: Gold coins rescue bid (http://new.ashbournenewstelegraph.co.uk/
ashbournenewstelegraph-news/displayarticle.asp?id=345543)
Wayne Homren, Editor
The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization promoting numismatic literature. See our web site at coinbooks.org.
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