Finding Roman treasure

The first clue to Birnie’s hidden secrets came from a local metal-detectorist who found a scatter of Roman silver coins. These raised lots of questions - why were the coins found here, so far north of the Roman frontier? Were they part of a scattered hoard? And were they connected with the known Iron Age settlement in the field?

Above: Searching for the coin hoard.

This was a great chance to investigate the impact of the Roman empire beyond its borders. The archaeologists began to excavate. Working with the metal-detectorist, more coins were found and their positions plotted. They clustered in the heart of the Iron Age settlement.

A trench was dug in this area, carefully stripping away the soil. More and more coins appeared. Finally, at the base of the ploughsoil, came the gleam of silver – the remains of the coin hoard, buried in a pot. Ploughing had damaged it, but most of the hoard was intact.

Discover what happened next...

Left: Work went on into the night to lift the hoard intact in a block of soil.

Right: Excavating the remains of the hoard.