Giving bribes or gifts to powerful local leaders was common
practice. All across northern Europe, chieftains were given coins
and other valuable items. This was intended to keep them friendly –
but it created tensions, making other leaders jealous. Over thirty
such coin hoards are known in Scotland.
Left: Bronze propaganda coin celebrating Severus’ Scottish
campaigns. It shows the goddess Victory and two captive
Caledonians.
Right: One of the Birnie coin hoards – a bribe?
Other finds show that the Romans already knew the people of
Birnie, and knew they were powerful. The bags of coins suggest a
series of gifts each year or two to maintain this relationship.
Despite the silver, problems continued. The Roman emperor
himself, Septimius Severus, led a massive army into north-east
Scotland in 209-210 AD. He died before he could defeat the
‘troublesome natives’. But things did improve, whether by battle or
bribery – for almost a century, the frontier was relatively
calm.
So, why did people bury all this
wealth?
Above: Distribution of silver coin hoards in Scotland.