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Unlocking the Mystery of the Blythburgh Coins
We are not unused to miraculous archaeological finds arising in the midst of the Suffolk landscape, from the fabulous Dark Age burial mounds of Sutton Hoo unearthed in the 1930s to the Hoxne Hoard discovered 60 years later.
Now, more recently and nearer to our district, another find has arisen from the mists of time. A hoard of nineteen rare gold coins from the Iron Age, the time of the Iceni tribe, was unearthed near Halesworth at Blythburgh in 2019. These coins have images of animals and strange symbols. Many of the coins contain hidden faces or eyebrows, wheels, plants and swirling patterns. The coins have been described by professional archaeologists as ‘very unusual’. Dr Booth, finds recording officer for Suffolk County Council, told the inquest into the find that one of the coins was previously unrecorded and “not seen before”, and that there had been “a lot of interest” from museums in obtaining them.
Halesworth and District Museum is proud to be the museum that was offered these coins by the British Museum.
The coins were valued at £16,000 which gave our Museum a huge challenge to raise the sum to retain and display them in the area in which they were buried some 2,000 years ago. These coins give us a glimpse into a strange, very different and largely unknown past. Through local fundraising and national and local grants we were able to puchase these coins and to purchase a secure cabinet to displat them in, together with the Cookley Hoards.
Another find in Blythburgh
Last year another twenty-two gold Iron Age coins were detected on the same site as the coins on display in the Museum. These additional coins have been offered to the Museum for £10,000.
We hope you can support us with this appeal.
We are launching an appeal to acquire the second find of twenty-two Iron Age gold coins from Blythburgh for the Halesworth & District Museum, where they will go on display with the nineteen coins from the first find. Both finds were discovered by metal detectorists. These coins are thought to date from between 60BC and 25AD, just before the Romans invaded Britain. They are very small, less than 10mm, but packed into these small coins are wonderful mystic and artistic designs. Images of the coins are included in our latest publication Buried Ancient Treasures of the Blyth Valley and also in the Report for HM Coroner, which can be downloaded here.
We have already secured generous support from the Arts Council England/V&A Purchase Grant Fund and are applying to other major funding bodies. We are seeking at least a further £3,500 to secure this important part of local Suffolk heritage to be retained in the Museum for future generations.
How to support the purchase of the second find of twenty-two coins of the Blythburgh Hoard
If you would like to be part of the team contributing to bringing these additional coins home to our Museum, then you can use donate by:
• Sending a cheque to the Museum
• Bank transfer to Barclays Bank:
Account name: The Halesworth & District Museum
Sort Code 20-16-12
Account Number 13489582
If you are a tax payer, and want to donate by bank transfer or by cheque, please fill in a Gift Aid form. Link to form here:
Please let us know that you have donated so that we can thank you and keep you up-to-date on the progress of this appeal.
On-line Talk
If you would like to learn more about the hidden images you can see in these remarkable coins then see the recording of online talk given by the Museum on 25th February 2021 at 2:30pm. This talk cover both the Blythburgh Iron Age Coin Hoard and the Cookley Roman Silver Coin Hoard. which we have just purchased.
The “Near Blythburgh” Hoard
A detailed description of the first find of the hoard and the
Museum Talk 25 Febuary 2021.