11 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Tens of Thousands of Ancient Bronze Coins Dating from the 4th Century Discovered Off Sardinia

A diver spotted something metallic at the bottom of the sea off the town of Arzachena in the Sassari province of northern Sardinia, the second-largest island off the coast of Italy, leading to the discovery of tens of thousands of ancient bronze coins.

The Italian Ministry of Culture said on Saturday that the diver had notified the authorities, who then dispatched divers from the ministry’s underwater archaeology department to form an art protection squad.

The coins were discovered in seagrass not far from the island’s northeastern shore and date to the first half of the fourth century. The exact number of coins recovered has yet to be determined because they are being sorted. According to a first estimate, made based on the overall weight of the discovery, the number of large bronze coins found would be between 30,000 and 50,000 specimens, more than those found in 2013 in the United Kingdom, in Seaton.

In addition to the coins, walls of amphorae of African production and, in smaller numbers, of oriental production were identified in the deposit.

The dives revealed the existence of two macro-areas of dispersion of follis in a large sandy area that opens up between the beach and the seagrass; the latter, given the location and shape of the seabed, there could be remains of ship wreckage nearby. All the coins taken are in an exceptional and rare state of conservation. Only 4 pieces are damaged, although still legible.

The chronological context of the coins can be found in a period between 324 (Licinius coinage) and 340 AD. Dating is confirmed by the presence of the coinage of Constantine the Great and that of all the other members of the family present as caesars but above all by the absence of centenionales, minted starting from 346 AD. The recovered follis group comes from almost all the mints of the empire active in that period except Antioch, Alexandria, and Carthage.

“The treasure found in the waters off Arzachena represents one of the most important coin discoveries, in recent years, said Luigi La Rocca, a Sardinian archaeology department official.

The coins, which date from the first half of the fourth century, are in excellent condition and provide valuable insight into the region’s history. The discovery also emphasizes the importance of safeguarding the Mediterranean Sea’s archaeological heritage.

Related Articles

Exceptional Iron Age Artifacts Discovered at Celtic Necropolis in France

18 April 2025

18 April 2025

An archaeological excavation in Creuzier-le-Neuf, a small town located six miles north of Vichy, has unveiled a remarkable Celtic necropolis,...

Unique Iron Age Divination Spoon Found on the Isle of Man

21 February 2025

21 February 2025

A unique bronze spoon, dating back 2,000 years and believed to have played a role in divination rituals, has been...

Medieval subterranean corridors found by accident in northeast Iran

1 October 2022

1 October 2022

The workers working on a routine road construction project near Shahr-e Belqeys (City of Belqeys) in northeast Iran made an...

5500-year-old pentagon structure found in North China

13 November 2021

13 November 2021

Archaeologists discovered the remnants of a pentagonal structure going back 5,500 years in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, north China. According to...

Medallion of Emperor Caracalla Minted in Pergamon Found in Roman Tombs in Bulgaria

13 February 2024

13 February 2024

One of the valuable discoveries from the Roman tombs discovered near the village of Nova Varbovka in Strazhitsa municipality in...

Huge ancient stone murals discovered in central China: “It is an important discovery that enriches and rewrites the art history of the Song Dynasty”

10 October 2022

10 October 2022

Two stone murals from the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) have been discovered in Henan Province, central China, and are the...

Hundreds of skeletons found on Welsh beach

4 July 2021

4 July 2021

Archaeologists found the burial site of women and children just below the surface of the sand dunes on Whitesands Bay...

9th-Century Slave-Built Large-Scale Agricultural System Discovered in Southern Iraq

3 June 2025

3 June 2025

A recent archaeological study has unveiled compelling evidence of a vast agricultural infrastructure in southern Iraq, believed to have been...

A Newly Found 12,000-year-old Burial in Türkiye May Belong to a Female ‘Shaman’

28 July 2024

28 July 2024

A recently published study suggests that a woman buried in the upper reaches of the Tigris River in south-eastern Türkiye...

Multiple Burials found at Çatalhöyük

17 September 2021

17 September 2021

Multiple burials were unearthed during the ongoing excavations in the house on the eastern mound of the Neolithic settlement Çatalhöyük....

Mystery of the World’s Oldest Map on a Nearly 3,000-year-old Babylonian Tablet Finally Solved

28 October 2024

28 October 2024

A recent British Museum video reveals that the “oldest map of the world in the world” on a clay tablet...

New Research Links Climate Crisis to the Fall of the Roman Empire

11 April 2025

11 April 2025

A study led by scientists at the University of Southampton, in collaboration with Queen’s University Canada and the Chinese Academy...

In Turkey’s Gedikkaya Cave, a stone figurine was discovered inside a 16,500-year-old votive pit

17 December 2022

17 December 2022

A stone figurine was discovered in a 16500-year-old votive pit belonging to the Epi-paleolithic period, the transition phase from the...

An extraordinary votive treasure was unearthed in the ancient Roman bath sanctuary of San Casciano Dei Bagni in Italy

7 August 2022

7 August 2022

In San Casciano Dei Bagni, a Tuscan hill town famous for its hot springs, 40 miles southeast of Siena, unique...

Military Team Discovers Remarkable 2,000-Year-Old Celtic Artifacts, Including Chariot Parts and Bridle-Bit

4 February 2025

4 February 2025

Military personnel and veterans at RAF Valley in Anglesey on the island of Anglesey, Wales, have uncovered sensational Iron Age...