A Finnish Metal Detectorist Was Shocked to Unearth a Trove of Viking Age Silver in His Hometown. Then His Detector Went Off Again
The hoard contains thousands of coins, jewelry and hack silver, and archaeologists say its precise burial date remains unknown.
- On September 3, metal detectorist Kalle Lappinen discovered Finland's largest Viking Age silver hoard near Sysmä, containing almost 10 pounds of coins and jewelry about 95 miles north of Helsinki.
- Archaeologist Esko Tikkala of the Lahti Historical Museum excavated the site, where two deposits were buried 18 inches below ground and 39 feet apart, containing coins from Germany, Sweden, and Great Britain dating to between 1000 and 1050.
- Although the hoard belongs to the Viking Age period, Tikkala noted "the term Viking Age does not imply that there were Vikings in Finland." The find surpasses the previous record holder discovered in Nousiainen in 1895, which contained more than 1,700 coins but weighed only half as much.
- The hoard, valued at almost $10,000 based on precious metal weight alone, has not yet been fully cleaned or counted. Tikkala said "there will definitely be scientific articles published on the hoard as a whole, as well as more detailed studies of the coins themselves."
- Other Nordic countries have also recently reported major Viking Age hoards, including a Norwegian cache of more than 4,700 coins discovered this past spring and a Danish homeowner's find of more than 700 silver objects weighing more than 40 pounds.
14 Articles
14 Articles
A Finnish Metal Detectorist Was Shocked to Unearth a Trove of Viking Age Silver in His Hometown. Then His Detector Went Off Again
Weighing a combined ten pounds, the artifacts are estimated to be 1,000 years old and constitute Finland’s largest coin hoard of the era
An extraordinary archaeological find has been discovered in Finland – thousands of Viking Age silver coins weighing a total of about 4.5 kilograms. The hoard is the largest such find from the Late Iron Age ever found in the country, reports nytimes.com. Kalle Lapinen, who has been searching with a metal detector for years, came across the treasure. On September 3, he was exploring an area near the center of Sysmä, in the Pääjät-Häme region of so…
An archaeologist in Finland has discovered a 4.5-kilogram silver treasure dating back to the Viking Age. The discovery has been recorded as the largest treasure ever found in the country.
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