Two Amateur Freedivers Uncover Significant Roman Coins in Spain
Two amateur freedivers in Spain uncover one of the largest collections of significant Roman coins in Europe.
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The 53 discovered coins were declared readable and in good condition.
On August 24, while diving off the island of Portitxol in Xàbia, Spain, two amateur freedivers Luis Lens and Cesar Gimeno uncovered Roman coins that date back between the 4th and 5th centuries.
According to a press release issued by the Spanish University of Alicante, Lens and Gimeno first found eight coins, before archaeologists returned back and discovered another 45 coins and the remains of a chest.
The university's Institute for Research in Archeology and Historical Heritage analyzed the 53 coins and declared them readable and in good condition.
The coins displayed the faces of emperors such as Valentinian I, Valentinian II, Todosio I, Arcadi, and Honorius.
Jaime Molina Vidal, professor of ancient history at the university and leader of the team of archaeologists, stated that this set of "valuable" Roman coins was one of the largest in Europe.
He added that this significant discovery could help explain the final phase of the fall of the Western Roman Empire.
Historians mentioned that the coins could have been intentionally hidden to avoid theft, especially at the time where the Roman Empire witnessed the arrival of barbarians, such as the Suevi, Vandals, and Alans, leading to its fall.
The University of Alicante announced that the discovered coins will be restored and exhibited in the Soler Blasco Archaeological and Ethnographic Museum of Xàbia.
