During an excavation in Senon, in France’s Lorraine region, archaeologists uncovered three ceramic vessels containing Roman coins that had remained buried for around 1,800 years. The discovery came ahead of a planned home extension. Its scale and setting within a Roman settlement make it impressive.
The excavation covered approximately 1,500 square meters. Archaeologists identified the hoards alongside stone-paved streets and domestic buildings. They also found workshops and heating installations, signs of an organized community rather than an isolated hiding place. The French National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP) has described the remains as evidence of a prosperous settlement whose inhabitants likely included artisans and merchants.
Hidden Wealth in Plain Sight
The vessels were reportedly placed in pits inside homes, with their mouths close to ground level. Their position suggests the coins could be reached again, rather than being concealed in a remote location. Archaeologists interpret the deposits in context: the pits and surrounding buildings, together with evidence of later events, help explain how the money was kept and why it was never recovered.
Two hoards were found during the INRAP excavation; the Regional Archaeology Service had identified a third earlier. One large vessel contained approximately 38 kilograms of coins, estimated at 23,000 to 24,000 pieces. Another held around 50 kilograms, with an estimated 18,000 to 19,000 coins. The smaller vessel contained three coins. Together, the two large deposits represent an estimated 41,000 to 43,000 pieces.
The reported weights and counts yield average gross weights of roughly 1.6 to 1.7 grams per coin in the first large hoard and 2.6 to 2.8 grams in the second. Those averages fit large accumulations of small-denomination coinage. Differences between the deposits may reflect their coin mixes and the condition of the material as recovered.
Coins from a Turbulent Era
Coin portraits include Victorinus and Tetricus I, while Tetricus II also appears. These rulers were associated with the breakaway Gallic Empire. Victorinus ruled from about 269 to 271 CE; Tetricus I and his son Tetricus II governed the Gallic territories until Emperor Aurelian’s reconquest in 274. Their coins place the assemblages amid the political fragmentation of the third-century Roman Empire.
The hoards are believed to have been buried between 280 and 310 CE. The portraits identify rulers represented in the assemblages, while the latest coins and archaeological layers provide the basic evidence for dating the deposits. The settlement’s paved streets and homes, alongside its workshops and heating systems, place the finds within a lived-in community.
Similar hoards have been documented in the Meuse department, but the Senon deposits stand out for their scale and domestic location. Their position near ground level is consistent with accessible storage. Still, the circumstances of each deposit must be assessed alongside evidence from the surrounding structure and archaeological layer.
Fire, Reoccupation and Abandonment
INRAP reports that a major fire swept through the neighborhood in the early fourth century. The area was briefly reoccupied before another devastating blaze, then abandoned by the mid-fourth century. That sequence may explain why the vessels were left behind: fires and changes in the settlement could have disrupted the lives of the people who stored the coins.
The Senon finds offer a rare view of wealth and everyday life in a Roman provincial settlement. Their scale and archaeological setting can help researchers examine how money was accumulated and stored during a period of political change. Further study of the coins and site may add detail to the community’s history and the circumstances in which its buried wealth was lost.
