9 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Ancient Rituals and ‘Devil’s Money’: Elite Pagans’ Medieval Cult Site Unearthed at Hezingen

Researchers in the eastern Netherlands have uncovered a medieval cult site featuring structural remains and a hoard of gold and silver coins, known as “devil’s money,” which were offered as tributes to pagan gods, providing valuable insights into the rituals of pre-Christian communities in the region before their conversion to Christianity in the eighth century.

Located in the village of Hezingen, approximately 80 miles east of Amsterdam, an ancient cult site was excavated in 2020 and 2021 following the discovery of coins by metal detectorists.

 Researchers believe the site was established in the early seventh century and was utilized by local pagans for about a century. The findings were detailed in a study published in the journal Medieval Archaeology last December.

Archaeologists found over 200 objects — mostly gold coins (tremisses), sceattas (early medieval silver coins), and elaborate pendants — were recovered from an area roughly 40 meters long and 15 meters wide.

The coins discovered at the site originated from various regions, including those minted by Madelinus, a moneyer from the Frisian trading hub of Dorestad, as well as from Frankish, Anglo-Saxon, and Lower Rhine territories. This diversity suggests that Hezingen was part of extensive trade and cultural networks.

6th-century enclosed cult house or ceremonial building (‘hall’) and possible magnate’s residence (‘Herrenhof’) and a late-neolithic burial mound. Image credits: Jan-Willem de Kort, Mario van IJzendoorn and Archeocare in de Kort et al. 2024.
6th-century enclosed cult house or ceremonial building (‘hall’) and possible magnate’s residence (‘Herrenhof’) and a late-neolithic burial mound. Image credits: Jan-Willem de Kort, Mario van IJzendoorn and Archeocare in de Kort et al. 2024.

A significant finding was the discovery of what appears to be a large sanctuary at the center of the site. This sacred area featured a 30-meter-long alignment of wooden posts, oriented with the rising and setting sun during the spring and autumn equinoxes, indicating its possible use as a solar observatory. Additionally, a massive boulder was found nearby, which may have been utilized in rituals. Notably, some gold coins were located within postholes, suggesting that offerings were placed on or near the wooden structures prior to their decay or removal.

Jan-Willem de Kort, one of the authors of the study, stated, “The four rows of poles are aligned exactly east-west.” He noted that due to the site’s high elevation, the sun rises precisely in the east at the spring equinox, a fact that can be easily verified using modern solar panel software.

The study highlights that cult sites like Hezingen are rare but essential for understanding the transformation of ritualistic behaviors in Europe as the continent gradually transitioned from paganism to Christianity, a shift initiated by the conversion of Roman Emperor Constantine I in the early fourth century.

Historically, Hezingen was located just north of the Roman Empire’s northern border, known as the Lower German Limes. Germanic tribes frequently attacked this border, reclaiming lands previously conquered by Rome, long before the Hezingen site was established in the 600s. However, by the late eighth century, Christian missionaries such as Plechelmus and Lebuinus had introduced Christianity to Hezingen, leading to the construction of the region’s first Christian churches, according to de Kort.

As missionaries arrived in Germania, they documented the practices of local pagans, noting that to convert to Christianity, these individuals had to renounce their old gods and cease offering them “devil’s money.”

The age of the Hezingen site may provide important insights into the Christianization process of the region, as the abundance of gold and silver artifacts suggests that its users were likely regional elites.

De Kort, J. W., Brinkkemper, O., Van Doesburg, J., Groenewoudt, B., Heeren, S., Kars, M., … Pol, A. (2024). Diobolgeldæ (The Devil’s Money): The Early-Medieval Cult Site of Hezingen, The Netherlands. Medieval Archaeology68(2), 306–330. https://doi.org/10.1080/00766097.2024.2419198

Cover Image Credit: Jan-Willem de Kort, Mario van IJzendoorn and Archeocare in de Kort et al. 2024

Related Articles

3,000-Year-Old Hazelnut Shells Discovered in the Sacred Hittite City of Nerik

30 July 2024

30 July 2024

In the sacred Hittite city of Nerik, located in the northern Vezirköprü district of Samsun province in the Central Black...

Buddha statue discovered in ancient city of Berenice, Egypt

29 April 2023

29 April 2023

Archaeologists excavating in the ancient Egyptian seaport Berenice Troglodytica on the western shore of the Red Sea have unearthed a...

From Tengri to Teshub: Sacred Yada Stone and Elemental Power in Ancient Anatolia

19 May 2025

19 May 2025

From the windswept steppes of Central Asia to the sacred temples of Anatolia, ancient civilizations shared a powerful belief: that...

Archaeologists discovered large Roman baths under city museum in Croatia

8 December 2023

8 December 2023

Archaeologists who helped with the restoration work of the Split City Museum, one of the most important and visited museums...

7,000-Year-Old Alutiiq Villages Discovered on Alaska’s Shuyak Island

3 July 2025

3 July 2025

A recent archaeological survey led by the Alutiiq Museum has revealed significant discoveries on Shuyak Island, part of the Kodiak...

New documentary searches history of Turkey’s 7,000-year-old Arslantepe Mound

28 December 2021

28 December 2021

The tale of Turkey’s fascinating 7,000-year-old Arslantepe Mound, an ancient building in Malatya, eastern Turkey that was just added to...

Archaeologists Found Probable Evidence of the Existence of Amazons in Azerbaijan

27 March 2024

27 March 2024

Archaeological research carried out in Azerbaijan recently likely confirmed the existence of Amazons, female warriors from Greek mythology. During excavations...

2000-year-old Ancient Greek ‘graduate school yearbook’ carved in stone found

5 June 2022

5 June 2022

Historians have discovered that an ancient Greek inscription on a marble slab in the collection of the National Museums of...

Thousand-year-old bone skate discovered in Czech Republic

20 March 2024

20 March 2024

Archaeologists from the central Moravian city of Přerov, Czech Republic have announced a unique discovery. While carrying out excavations in...

Unlucky medieval woman underwent at least two skull surgeries in Longobard Italy

14 February 2023

14 February 2023

A detailed examination of the skull of a woman who lived at the medieval settlement of Castel Trosino in central...

Brick tombs dating from the Jin Dynasty have been unearthed in Shanxi Province

15 August 2021

15 August 2021

Archaeologists discovered two brick tombs at an old cemetery with 14 crypts in north China‘s Shanxi Province. The findings offer...

3,000-year-old skeletons of nine children were discovered in Qazvin province, Iran

29 April 2023

29 April 2023

Archaeologists from the University of Tehran have discovered the remains of children dating back 3,000 years during excavations in an...

2800-year-old settlement discovered in Vadnagar, India

17 January 2024

17 January 2024

An excavation in Gujarat’s Vadnagar, about 900 km southwest of New Delhi, India, has found the remains of a settlement...

Anatolia’s first company was founded 4000 years ago with 15 kilos of gold!

26 May 2024

26 May 2024

A 4,000-year-old tablet found in Kültepe shows that the first company in Anatolia was established by 12 people with 15...

Archaeological Dig at Jerusalem’s Holy Sepulchre Corroborates New Testament Account of Garden

3 May 2025

3 May 2025

A significant archaeological excavation nearing its conclusion at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem’s Old City has yielded...