Roman coin was buried for 2,000 years in Poland — until metal detector found it
Krzysztof Kozłowski was using his metal detector to search for artifacts in Poland when he came across something extraordinary.
Buried near the Vistula River in Józefów, a silver coin with serrated edges and inscriptions on its front and back was unearthed by Kozlowski, according to a May 4 Facebook post from Lublin Provincial Conservator of Monuments.
Now, experts have identified the small coin as a 2,000-year-old Roman denarius, officials said. Using the coin’s inscriptions, it was determined that the relic dates to about 81 B.C.
On the front side of the coin is a bust of Ceres, the Roman goddess of vegetation and harvest, according to the conservator. Below Ceres’ chin is an unspecified object, but experts think it could have been a cornucopia or ear of corn.
More telling about the coin’s history is its backside.
The back depicts a plowman standing behind two oxen pulling a plow, the conservator said. Beneath this image is a partially preserved inscription: MARI·C.
Historians said the inscription was likely originally C·MARI·C·F, the monogram of Gaius Marius.
Marius served as one of the three officials who oversaw the minting of coins during the late Roman republic, according to experts. At the time, these officials could mint personalized coins, including placing their names on coins they made.
Józefów is about 90 miles southeast of Warsaw.
Google Translate was used to translate the Facebook post from the Lublin Provincial Conservator of Monuments.
This story was originally published May 10, 2023 at 1:24 PM with the headline "Roman coin was buried for 2,000 years in Poland — until metal detector found it."
