Young Girl Discovers Viking Coins Dating Back Over 1,000 Years Ago in Danish Field
Last fall, a young girl discovered around 300 pieces of silver from two Viking treasures, containing approximately 50 whole coins, in a Danish field at Bramslev, about five miles away from the Viking castle Fyrkat. The treasures, which date back over a thousand years ago, were found less than 50 meters apart and contain a mixture of Danish, German, and Arab coins, as well as cut-up silver jewelry. North Jutland Museums stated that the treasures probably served as a means of payment by weight.
The Danish coins found in the treasure are called cross coins, which were minted during the reign of King Harald Blåtand in the 970s through the 980s, and were likely introduced in connection with his Christianization of the Danes. The museum stated that the cross coins were in circulation for only a few decades before losing the power struggle to his son, Svend Tveskæg, in the mid-980s. The other pieces of silver came from the same piece of jewelry, an unusually large ring pin used by men at the top of society in Viking Age Ireland and neighboring islands.
Archaeologists at North Jutland Museums said the Bramslev treasures were likely abandoned in a settlement eight kilometers from Harald Blåtand's Viking fortress Fyrkat around the same time or shortly after the castles were abandoned. They speculate that the treasures were hidden away by the local magnate at Bramslev if there were disturbances at Fyrkat. Torben Trier Christiansen, an archaeologist and museum inspector at North Jutland Museums, noted that the Bramslev treasures constitute a fantastic story and will be on display this summer at the Aalborg Historical Museum. Excavation of the area will continue this autumn, focusing on finding the traces of buildings the treasures were originally buried inside or very close to.