The government of the Czech Republic recently announced an extraordinary discovery made by travelers in the Krkonoš Mountains. A group of tourists stumbled upon a 15-pound treasure that included 598 gold coins, a silver wallet, and gold artifacts such as bracelets and cigarette cases. Realizing the significance of their find, the tourists reported it to the authorities and handed the treasure over to the East Bohemian Museum in Hradec Králové.
“This is one of the most unusual discoveries in modern Czech history. When I saw the contents of the box, my jaw dropped. Without a doubt, the coins are made of pure gold,” shared Miroslav Novak, head of the museum’s archaeology department. The expert estimated the treasure to be worth approximately 7.5 million Czech crowns, or more than $330,000.
What else is known about the find?
The treasure was buried in two containers on the southwestern slope of a hill, The Jerusalem Post reported. Among the items discovered were 598 gold coins wrapped in black fabric, a silver wallet, 10 bracelets, 16 cigarette cases, a key on a chain, and a powder compact. Most of the artifacts are made of gold.
The treasure was buried over a hundred years ago. The coins date back to between 1808 and 1915, noted numismatist Vojtěch Bradle. He also explained that the treasure belongs to the era of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, specifically during the reign of Franz Joseph I, the husband of the famous Empress Sisi.
Most of the coins originated from France, while the rest were minted in Austria-Hungary, Belgium, and the Ottoman Empire. However, there were no coins from Germany or Czechoslovakia in the cache, which raises questions about who buried the treasure and why. Researchers noted that several coins bore smaller countermarks, likely added after World War I. Bradle also stated that the discovered coins were in Serbia between 1920 and 1930, but it remains unclear how and when they made their way to East Bohemia.
According to researchers, the treasure is significant not only because of its weight but also due to its recent origins, with its historical value being, as they say, immeasurable. Scientists are currently trying to determine why the treasure was buried on the hillside. One theory suggests it may have been hidden after Nazi Germany annexed a part of Czechoslovakia known as the Sudetenland around 1938. At that time, many Jews and Czechs migrated deeper into the country to escape persecution. Another hypothesis is that this treasure may have belonged to Germans expelled by Stalinist communists at the end of the war.
“The treasure could have belonged to a Jewish family, a displaced Czech, or a German. There’s also a possibility that it was stolen from an antiquities dealer, but that version is weak,” said museum director Petr Grulich.
He explained that the practice of burying treasures dates back to prehistoric times. Initially, “it was done for ritual reasons, later for the protection of wealth during turbulent times,” Mr. Novak elaborated. People who buried valuables hoped to return and reclaim them later. However, that was not always the case.