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Archaeology News: Ancient piggy bank: Excavation in France reveals 40,000 Roman coins from 1,700 years ago

Ancient piggy bank: Excavation in France reveals 40,000 Roman coins from 1,700 years ago

The experts who analysed the coins believe, based on the dates on the coins, that the discovery unburied a treasure which was buried between A.D. 280 and 310.

By Jerusalem Post Staff, December 8, 2025

https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-879568

A jug holding a vast number of Roman coins was found during an excavation at a French village. (photo credit: Simon Ritz, Inrap)

Excavations in France have recently revealed three ancient storage jars filled with thousands of Roman coins from 1,700 years ago, Live Science reported last week.

The archaeologists discovered that the vessels were buried in what was once the living room floor of a settlement's house, with the goal of serving as safer or piggy banks.

Known as amphorae, the jugs were unearthed during excavations by the National Institute for Preventive Archeological Research (INRAP) team in Senon, northeastern France.

According to Live Science Plus, the three jugs contained more than 40,000 Roman coins. The calculus were made based on weight.

The first round resulted in 83 pounds (38 kilograms), which "corresponds to approximately 23,000 to 24,000 coins," Vincent Geneviève, a numismatist with INRAP who is analyzing the hoards, told Live Science in an email.

A researcher excavates one of the 1,700-year-old coin hoards. (credit: Lino Mocci, Inrap)

The second weighing round yielded 100 pounds (50 kilograms) from the inside of the jug in question, plus the 400 coins recovered from the broken neck of the object, totaling 18,000 to 19,000 coins, according to INRAP.

The last jug was not found at the excavation site; only its imprint remained in the ground. By the time of the discovery, only three coins had been found.

Ancient Roman treasures?

"Contrary to what one might think at first glance, it is not certain that these are 'treasures' that were hidden during a period of insecurity," according to a November 26 translated statement from INRAP.

The experts who analysed the coins believe, based on the printed dates, that the discovery unburied a treasure from between A.D. 280 and 310. The coins were manufactured during the reign of emperors Victorinus, Tetricus I, and his son Tetricus II, during the Gallic Empire.

"In two cases, the presence of a few coins found stuck to the rim of the jar clearly indicates that they were deposited after the vase was buried, when the pit had not yet been filled with sediment," according to the statement of INRAP.

Given that the jars were at ground level and accessible, the specialists concluded that they were being used as a long-term savings instrument.