The Coggalbeg hoard

The Coggalbeg hoard is an Early Bronze Age hoard of three pieces of Irish gold jewellery dating to 2300–2000 BC. It was found in a bog at Coggalbeg, County Roscommon in 1945, and consists of a gold lunula and two small gold discs. It's thought that the objects were ritually deposited as an offering to gods. The lunula is of the "Classical" type, considered the earliest and finest of three types of lunula. Of the estimated 100 lunula known in Western Europe, some 80 originate in Ireland.

The priceless gold was first discovered by farmer Hubert Lannon. He found it in a bog while cutting turf and kept it at home. In March 2010, two men pleaded guilty to burglary and were given three-year suspended sentences. Working with police, curators from the National Museum’s Irish Antiquities Division found out that the jewelry had been left in a dumpster in Dublin. The police had hours to locate the dumpster before the trash would be collected. The detectives waded through a dumpster and found the treasures. The necklace and two discs are among the most important archaeological discoveries in Ireland for many years.

The Roman gold ring that inspired J.R.R Tolkien

In 2016 the UK National Trust and the Tolkien Society put an artifact on display for fans of "The Lord of the Rings" to decide for themselves whether this was Tolkien's precious ring of power. The Vyne Ring or the Ring of Silvianus is a gold ring, dating to the 4th century, discovered in a field in Hampshire, England, in 1785.

Weighing 12g and featuring a ten-faceted design with a Venus-inscribed bezel, it's linked to a curse tablet. It was originally the property of a wealthy British Roman called Silvianus.

The large gold ring is inscribed in Latin, "Senicianus live well in God," and inset with an image of the goddess Venus. The ring is believed to be linked to a curse tablet found separately at the site of a Roman temple dedicated to a god named Nodens in Gloucestershire.

The tablet says a man called Silvianus had lost a ring, and it asks Nodens to place a curse of ill health on Senicianus until he returns it. An archeologist who looked into the connection between the ring and the curse tablet asked Tolkien, who was an Anglo-Saxon professor at Oxford University, to work on the etymology of the name Nodens in 1929.

Brutus aureus brings $2m

An aureus of Marcus Junius Brutus sold for €1.9 million ($2 million) at a Geneva auction in 2025, far exceeding its €800k estimate. Described as “one of the most iconic and historically significant coins in all of Roman history” it is one of 17 known to exist.The coin was minted following Brutus’s 44 B.C.E. murder of Julius Caesar, and before his suicide following defeat in the Battle of Philippi in 42 B.C.E.

Brutus on an Ides of March coin, issued shortly before his death.

The Battle of Philippi, involving up to 200,000 men was the largest of the Roman civil wars. It consisted of two battles in the plain west of the ancient city of Philippi. The first occurred in the first week of October. Brutus faced Octavian, and Antony's forces fought those of Cassius. Cassius comitted suicide after losing, but the overall battle was a draw. A second encounter, on 23 October, finished off Brutus's forces after a hard-fought hand to hand battle. Brutus took his own life in turn.

Mars Ultor 'the Avenger'

At the battle of Philippi, Octavian vowed to avenge the assassination of Caesar.

Augustus, 27 BCE – 14 CE, Denarius (Silver, 3.85 g)

Octavian set plans in motion to build a temple honoring the god Mars Ultor 'the Avenger'. While Rome had succeeded in conquering most of the civilized world, they had never succeeded against Parthia. The Parthian Empire was spread across Central Asia and posed a formidable challenge. Rome fought and lost to Parthia three times, the most devastating in 53 BCE. Crassus, the leader of the Roman army, was killed and Rome was humiliated, with the Roman standards of the Legions lost to the Parthians.

Carrhae was a horrible defeat for the Romans; leader at the battle had been Crassus, Rome’s richest man. The Parthians captured him and allegedly had him killed by pouring molten gold down his throat.

The loss of a legion's standard the Aquilae (Eagle) was taken as a huge moral defeat. Romans would spend decades fighting to recover them. Julius Caesar and Mark Antony both attempted to reclaim the Roman standards by force but failed due to heavy battlefield losses. After ascending the throne, Augustus wanted to reclaim them. Through conquering Armenia, he was able to secure a strong offensive position against the Parthians. The Parthian king felt threatened, and proposed a truce to Augustus, offering to return the Roman standards and any surviving prisoners of war. Augustus agreed and he hailed the return of the roman standards as a major victory against the Parthians. He used his coinage to celebrate the triump.

Although promised in 42 BCE, the temple’s construction only began in 20 BCE. The Temple of Mars Ultor was constructed in Augustus’ new forum and paid for using the spoils of war.

Objects inside the temple included the standards and Augustus’ chariot. (often shown with a legionary eagle.)

Engravers weren’t aiming for photographic accuracy with images of famous Roman buildings. Coins showing the Temple are sometimes labelled MAR VLT.

Aegina’s Sea Turtle

Aegina is a rocky island in the Saronic Gulf located about 25 miles southeast of Athens. It was settled around 900 BCE and was named after the daughter of the Greek river god Asopos. The inhabitants became expert merchants and tradesmen, dominating the shipping industry early in the sixth century BCE. Their success brought the island great wealth and power. The first coins were thought to be made by the king of Argos, Pheidon. Coins with the turtle design were an important early global trade currency.

Aegina became the first of the Greek city-states to issue coined money, starting in the mid-sixth century BCE. Their common didrachm “stater” coinage weighed about 12.6 grams. Their status as the first international trade currency was aided by consistent design. Aegina’s coins spread far throughout the known world.

Gaius (Caligula) with Agrippina Senior - $216k

Leading the sale in November 2024 was a fine Gaius (Caligula) (AD 37-41), with Agrippina Senior. AV aureus (20mm, 7.76 gm, 6h). NGC AU 4/5 - 4/5. Lugdunum, 2nd issue, AD 37-38.

Issued early in his reign, the coin honors his mother Agrippina Senior, who died in 33 AD after being exiled by Tiberius. Caligula initially honored his family in his first year, including his sisters, but the inclusion of his mother was a bad omen for his family line.

37-41 AD. Æ Sestertius (35mm, 28.85 g, 6h). Rome mint. Struck 37-38 AD. C CAESAR. AVG. GERMANICVS. PON. M TR POT., Laureate head left / Gaius' three sisters standing facing: Agrippina (as Securitas) leaning on column, holding cornucopiae; Drusilla (as Concordia), holding patera and cornucopiae; Julia (as Fortuna) holding rudder and cornucopiae. Drusilla died in 38 AD at the age of 22.

In his demented madness, Caligula's incestuous lust for his remaining sisters turned to violent hatred, and he ultimately banished them to the Pontian Islands.

Choice Tiberius among Heritage offerings

A rare Tiberius aureus represents a high-grade example of the "Tribute Penny" type, which was the standard gold currency throughout most of his AD 14–37 reign. The coins feature the laureate head of Tiberius (obverse) and the seated figure of Livia as Pax (reverse). The Pontifex Maximus was the highest-ranking chief priest in ancient Rome’s state religion, overseeing the College of Pontiffs

Tiberius (AD 14-37). AV aureus. NGC Choice AU★ 5/5 - 4/5. Lugdunum.

Heritage offers spectacular ancients. A choice Tiberius aureus will make $10k.

Severus Alexander (AD 222-235). AV aureus. NGC Choice MS★ 5/5 - 5/5.

The auction was crowned by a Mint State example of a Lydian ‘Light Series’ Stater, introduced under the rule of Croesus.

Meteorite smashed into Earth 12,800 years ago

Scientists in South Africa have discovered new evidence that the Earth was struck by a meteorite or asteroid 12,800 years ago, causing global climate change and mass extinction. Soil samples from an archaeological site called Wonderkrater outside a small town north of Pretoria found a spike in platinum levels, which they say supports the Younger Dryas Impact hypothesis. The theory assumes that a disintegrating asteroid, which is high in platinum, impacted Earth, causing an ice age. Many large species were wiped out as a result off the Earth’s rapid cooling. The impact from the asteroid or comet sent dust into the air, which might have reduced the amount of sunlight reaching Earth.

Pollen from various plants also reveal a much cooler period, which is called the Younger Dryas. Scientists believe human populations may have also have been negatively affected.

The late Quaternary archaeological site Wonderkrater, located in the Limpopo Province in South Africa, consists of a large spring and peat mound with deposits dated to more than 30,000 years ago. With the rich information this Middle Stone Age site has yielded, it was an ideal place to look for evidence of the “platinum spike” associated with the Younger Dryas, which had not previously been found on the African continent. A team of researchers found such evidence in the form of temperature changes based on pollen analysis.

The Trier Gold Hoard

The Trier Gold Hoard consists of over 2500 gold coins with a weight of 18.5 kg found in Trier, Germany, during construction works. On 9 September 1993, an excavator unearthed and ripped apart a bronze cauldron during excavations for an underground parking garage. The Trier Hoard is described as the largest preserved Roman gold hoard worldwide.

A Dutch man faced attempted robbery charges for the failed theft of the Trier Hoard. In 2019, a group of men broke into the Rhineland State Museum with the intention to steal the hoard. The group entered the museum by scaling scaffolding and prying open a window. Inside, they discovered a thick pane of glass reinforced with steel mesh. It proved too difficult to remove. Within three minutes the alarm went off, prompting the thieves to flee.

Part of the cauldron and some coins went to a dump site, initially unnoticed. An amateur archaeologist, Erich Eixner went back to the excavation site at night and found the larger part of the bronze cauldron, containing 560 coins and an additional lump of 1500 coins. He informed authorities and received about 20,000 DM, a fraction of their worth. The oldest coins were struck by Nero in 63/64 AD, the youngest under Septimius Severus between 193 and 196.

Iron Age Gold Hoard Brings £33,200

The largest known hoard of Iron Age coins to be deposited during the reign of King Dubnovellaunos, who ruled the Trinovantes between 25 BC and 10 AD, fetched a combined hammer price of £33,200. 16 staters and one quarter-stater were found.

All of the Staters in the hoard are inscribed, and they can be attributed to two figures: Addedomaros and Dubnovellaunos. These are leaders to different tribes: the Catuvellauni and the Trinovantes respectively. Trinovantian staters, minted primarily in the 1st century BC to early 1st century AD in Essex, are typically composed of gold alloyed with silver and copper, showing a gradual debasement over time. Composition of the 5.4gm-5.6gm coin was 46%–48% Gold (Au), 8%–15% Silver (Ag), and 38%–44% Copper.

Researchers stumble over evidence of King Midas

Archaeologists were investigating an ancient mound site in central Turkey called Türkmen-Karahöyük in 2020.

A local farmer told the group that a nearby canal, recently dredged, revealed the existence of a strange stone, marked with an unknown inscription. The script was written in ancient Luwian. Researchers found that the hieroglyphs on this ancient stone block – called a stele – boasted of a military victory. And not just any military victory, but the defeat of Phrygia, a kingdom of Anatolia that existed roughly 3,000 years ago.

The royal house of Phrygia was ruled by a few Midas, but dating of the stele (8th century BC) suggests the block's hieroglyphics are referring to the King Midas.The mound at Türkmen-Karahöyük.

The daric

The Achaemenid Empire ruled over much of the Middle East from 550 to 330 BCE. Coinage was issued from the mint of Sardis and consisted of the silver siglos and the gold daric. The coins remained basically unchanged for over two hundred years. The daric was a high-purity gold coin of 8.4 grams based on the ancient Babylonian shekel. It was a month’s pay for a mercenary. One daric exchanged for 20 silver sigloi.

When Cyrus the Great (550–530) came to power, coinage was unfamiliar in his realm. Cyrus the Great introduced coins to the Persian Empire after 546 BCE, following his conquest of Lydia and the defeat of its king Croesus, whose father Alyattes had put in place the first bi-metal coinage in history. The staters had a weight of 10.7 grams, a standard initially created by Croesus.

Hoards of the international trade coin have been found from Sicily to Afghanistan. The daric is one of the few coins mentioned in the Old Testament. There are 4 main types of daric. There are few survivors of the type 1 and type 2 coins, making them extremely valuable. The Type 3 daric is by far the most common. Dated from around 485 to 420 BCE, there are several variants. Condition determines value. The rare Type IV daric, dated c. 455-420, shows the king holding a short dagger rather than a spear.

Even more rare and valuable are “double darics” which continued to be struck under Alexander the Great at Babylon for a short time after the fall of the Persian empire. The example shown made $50k in 2015.