Germany: discovery of the largest treasure of Roman coins

On Tuesday September 22, the local office responsible for archaeological monuments at the Rheinisches Landesmuseum in Bonn announced to the Associated Press the discovery of “the most important monetary treasure ever discovered in Germany”. A lot of 934 Roman silver denarii dating from the time of Emperor Hadrian, probably deliberately buried during the 2nd century. The discovery was not the work of the Bonn museum teams, but of Oliver Riedl, a budding detectorist who got his hands on this loot in 2025, in a field in Wesseling, south of Cologne. “It was clear to me that there was something important buried here,” he said.

According to the LVR Office for the Preservation of Archaeological Monuments in the Rhineland, this treasure, which weighs no less than 3.1 kilograms, has an “invaluable” value. Researchers still don't know who it could have belonged to. One thing is certain, the owner hid it in this field voluntarily to “keep it safe”, specifies state archaeologist Ercih Classen. Before adding: “After all, banks did not exist at the time. And if we haven't found it before, it's perhaps because the one who buried it died without having revealed the hiding place, or even talked about his famous 934 silver coins.

The treasure trail of a Roman legionnaire was mentioned by the museum teams. Because Rome had integrated Germania Inferior into its empire, and in particular the region around Cologne, - from 39 BCE until 459 - which the Latins called Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium. They established a military outpost there, under the command of General Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, to secure the empire's border along the Rhine. The hypothesis was, however, ruled out. At that time, the legionaries “earned 300 denarii per year,” Rahel Otte, associate researcher at the archaeological office in Bonn, told the Associated Press. But about half of that was withheld for food and equipment. A legionnaire would therefore have had to save all his disposable income for about six years to amass the Wesseling treasure. »

Beyond the simple historical value of the treasure, this discovery rekindles the debate on the place occupied by amateur detectorists and other treasure inventors in the archaeological world. In Germany, the detection rules differ depending on the region, called the Länder, even if most of them prohibit this activity, on public or private land, in the absence of an official license issued by the local archaeological authorities, for a mere 75 euros. Sometimes found items may be subject to “treasure law”. After examination, the State may decide to preempt it.

As part of the Wesseling discovery, Oliver Riedl had apparently purchased a detection permit from the Cologne district government and the city archaeological service. His treasure hunt in the field does not constitute an illegal activity, because the state of North Rhine-Westphalia allows detectorists to practice their hobby on soils said to be “disturbed” by modern human activity, such as agriculture. No one knows if the budding researcher, lucky holder of 934 Roman silver denarii, received financial compensation from the German state. The loot is already preserved by the LVR-LandesMuseum in Bonn, where it is proudly exhibited.