Posted on 09/15/2007 9:57:04 AM PDT by blam
Rain uncovers Viking treasure trove
Published: 14th September 2007 08:30 CET
A bout of torrential rain left a surprising legacy in the garden of one Swede: a Viking treasure trove.
Two coins were uncovered by the rain on the lawn of farmer Tage Pettersson, on the island of Gotland, in early August. He called in Gotland's archaeologists, who last week found a further 52 coins on the site.
Most of the coins are German, English and Arabic currency from the late 900s and early 1000s. But archaeologists are most excited about the presence of six very rare Swedish coins, from the reign of Olof Skötkonug, king of Sweden from 994-1022.
One of the Swedish coins has never been found in Sweden before, although an example has been found in Poland. One of the other coins is only the second of its kind to have been found.
Archaeologist Dan Carlsson told Svenska Dagbladet that the coins were "very well preserved, and come from a period about which we know little in terms of coin history."
The English coins are likely to have been paid to the Vikings as an incitement to let them live in peace, he said.
Gotland is one of the richest sources anywhere of buried Viking treasure. Discoveries of coins and other treasure are made on a regular basis.
Scandinavian Kings are said to come from the same lines of Danes. Supposedly, the wives of Olof Skötkonug mentioned in the article were Edla of Vendland (of the Wends) & Astrid of the Obotrites.
The Wends come from someplace in Germany if I am not mistaken. I think I was told some of my ancestors were Wends.
old coinage ping
I am happy to have a government powerful enough to defeat some other government that wants to take mine away.
yitbos
Wasn't it a practice of the Swedes, when they went off to war, to virtually pick up everything, including the treasury, and just move along as they conquered? The king moved the kingdom along with him.
Do I recall one Swedish (Viking) crusade that went down some river (the Dnyper?), until the king just ran out of money?
yitbos
Thanks for the belly laugh.
Those aren’t treasures, those are mines.
Dog mines.
That is what they probably thought in Nazi Germany and USSR.
And if you haven't been paying attention, China is going to be the most powerful country in the world in the 21st century. We will be like the British in the 20th century.
With your name, you ask that? Amigo, you must have forgotten the sarcasm tag...
hey ditter, call me up, i will make sure i downplay the significance, anyways, unless there are human sorry, aboriginal skeletal remains, in the U.S., as long as its on private property, the only thing the government can try to take from you is taxes.
Now second thing, if its in Scandinavia, you cant call it Viking!! perhaps it was a tradesman’s horde, or a merchant, doesnt make it a viking just due to the time frame.!!
thanks for this additional link:
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/09/070924-vikings-treasure.html
The Real Viking Legacy
Source: FOX News
Published: 6 September 2000
Posted on 09/06/2000 06:49:47 PDT by advocate10
http://www.freerepublic.com/forum/a39b64b7b2169.htm
“...Archaeologist Dan Carlsson of Gotland University College...”
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