The Lava hoard - Corsica hoard

The Lava hoard is a Roman treasure of coins and gold plate that was discovered underwater in the small Gulf of Lava, southern Corsica, France, probably in 1958. Also known as the Corsica hoard, It's one of world's most important archaeological finds.

The “Corsica Hoard” was first discovered in the late 1950s by two urchin divers. Under French law, all underwater archaeological finds belong to the state. The treasure was dispersed into many private and public collections. 41 aurei and large gold medallions were sold to collectors. In 1986 it was revealed hundreds of high-grade Roman gold coins dating from 262 to 272 CE had been found.

A extremely rare gold medallion or 'multiple solidus' of Claudius Gothicus. 268 AD. Equivalent to 8 regular gold solidi. 38.83 grams.

450 pieces remain in public hands. Its thought the hoard contained at least 1,400 coins, comprised of coins from Gallienus, Claudius II, Quintillus, and Aurelianus. Archeologists date the wreck to either late 272 or early 273 CE. The gold coins found cover the period from the AD 262 Decennalia of Gallienus to the reign of Aurelian in AD 272.

The Berthouville Treasure

The Berthouville treasure is a hoard of Roman silver uncovered by ploughing in March 1830 at the hamlet of Villeret in Berthouville, Normandy, northern France. The treasure belonged to a sanctuary of Mercury Canetonensis. In the mid-1st century BCE, Julius Caesar had identified Mercury as one of the main deities of Gaul.

A cache of pearl and emerald-encrusted rings, bracelets, gold necklaces and other opulent objects from the Roman Empire were displayed at the Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades in 2015. The assortment of precious jewelry accompanies the 90-piece gilt-silver Berthouville Treasure of statuettes and ornamental vessels. The treasure consists of silver and other metalwork and dates to the 1st to late 2nd centuries

The restored treasure was exhibited at the Getty Villa from November 2014 to August 2015, then went on tour in the US and Europe before being returned to Paris.

Cameo of Emperor Trajan, Roman, about A.D. 100; sardonyx set in a seventeeth-century gold, enamel, and ruby mount

Pitcher with Scenes from the Trojan War, Roman, A.D. 1-100; silver and gold. Achilles dragging the body of Hector around the walls of Troy

Pitcher with Scenes from the Trojan War (detail), Roman, A.D. 1-100; silver and gold. The death of Achilles

Offering Bowl with a Medallion of Mercury in a Rural Shrine (detail), Roman, A.D. 175-225; silver and gold

Lampsakos

Lampsakos (Lampsacus) was an ancient Greek city located in modern day Turkey, strategically situated on the eastern side of the Hellespont.

Lampsakos was founded by Greek colonists in the 6th century B.C. It became main competitor of Miletus, controlling the trade routes in the Dardanelles. During the 6th and 5th centuries B.C., Lampsacus was successively dominated by Lydia, Persia, Athens, and Sparta.

LAMPSAKOS, Stater c. 360–340, Persic standard, AV 8.47 g. Obv. Laureate and head of Zeus left, lotus-tipped sceptre on right shoulder. Rev. Pegasus flying right

Lampsakos was the first ancient Greek city state to see its gold coinage reach broad acceptance for international trade, a testament to its prosperity and influence. The stater of Lampsakos became very popular, circulating from Sicily to the Black Sea.

In 196 BC, the Romans defended the town against Antiochus the Great, and it became an ally of Rome. Lampsacus was notable for its worship of Dionysus/Priapus, who was said to have been born there.

Lost Inca Gold - Treasure of the Llanganatis

Its not the mythical city of gold that draws treasure seekers to the rugged Llanganates mountain range in Ecuador, some say there's a vast Inca hoard of gold hidden from Spanish conquistadors there.

The Inca Empire in South America in the early 15th century was weak and quickly giving way to European invaders. Atahualpa was an Inca king who, after warring with his half-brother, Huáscar, for control of the empire, was captured at his palace in Cajamarca in modern-day Peru by Spanish commander Francisco Pizarro.

Pizarro agreed to release Atahualpa in return for a roomful of gold, but the Spaniard later reneged on the deal.

Atahualpa was garroted on August 29, 1533, and then burned at the stake before the last and largest part of the ransom had been delivered. The legend holds that the Inca general Rumiñahui was on his way to Cajamarca with the ransom when he learned of Atahualpa's fate. The story goes he buried the gold in a secret mountain cave. It is a tale between fact and fiction. Atahualpa's gold existed because it's recorded in the Spanish chronicle, and it's recorded that a large convoy of gold was on its way from Ecuador. After that the best stories revolve around the Llanganates.

The Llanganates Mountains are a remote and rugged area known for difficult terrain, including swamps, dense vegetation, and high altitudes. Some stories suggest that Rumiñahui may have thrown some of the gold into a lagoon to further conceal it.

Over the centuries countless explorers have sought Atahualpa's gold, but the mountains of the Llanganates have refused to surrender it.

Unlike in Peru, where attention goes to Inca sites such as Machu Picchu, Ecuador's archaeological ruins attract few tourists.

The 'Dolphin Rider' coinage of Tarentum

Tarentum, the city upon which modern Taranto, Italy was built, was founded in the eighth century BCE. Some attributed the civic beginnings to Taras, the legendary son of Poseidon and Satyria, a local nymph. In his myth, Taras falls from his ship during a storm, and is miraculously rescued and brought to shore by a dolphin. Starting in the very late sixth century BCE, Tarentum began issuing coinage paying tribute to the dolphin.

Though many denominations were struck over the ensuing three centuries, the most iconic was that of the nomos, a silver coin equivalent to two drachmai. Corresponding in size to U.S. nickel, these coins were a staple in regional trade. A vast quantity were struck owing to the fact that Tarentum was one of the most populous cities in the world around 500 BCE.

Burgess Shale

In 2021 a tourist from Belgium paid a price for trying to steal a fossil by putting it into a sock and stuffing it into his backpack. An alert guide at the Burgess Shale Formation in Canada’s Yoho National Park spotted him in a restricted area and alerted wardens. The tourist was collecting fossils illegally near the Walcott Quarry of the Burgess Shale, a fossil field with some artifacts more than 500 million years old. Wardens dug through the tourist’s backpack and discovered the trilobite fossil.

The Walcott Quarry of the Burgess Shale.

He was charged with removing a fossil with the intention of selling or trafficking the ancient artifact. A British Columbia provincial court fined him $4,000. Authorities say an active black market exists for fossils from the Burgess Shale with values ranging from $300 or $400 for common trilobite fossils. Larger and rarer fossils can sell for $10,000 or more.

The Burgess Shale Formation is located in the Canadian Rockies of British Columbia. It is one of the world's most celebrated fossil fields and is listed as a UNESCO world heritage site. It is famous for the exceptional preservation of the soft parts of its fossils. At 508 million years (Middle Cambrian) old, it is one of the earliest fossil beds containing soft-part imprints.

Burgess Shale contains the best record we have of Cambrian animal fossils. It reveals creatures originating from the Cambrian explosion, an evolutionary burst of animal origins dating 545 to 525 million years ago.

During this period, life was restricted to the world's oceans. The land was barren, uninhabited, and subject to mudslides which periodically rolled into the seas and buried marine organisms.

At Burgess, sediment was deposited in a deep-water basin adjacent to a huge algal reef with a vertical escarpment several hundred meters high.

The Burgess Shale fossils have been called the world’s most significant fossil discovery because of their great age, diversity, and detail of preservation.