How wonderful would it be to discover a treasure while cleaning out a family members home, investigating a leak or simply working at a construction site? All of these every day chores have helped some people collect a fortune and become wealthy overnight. Everyone would like to find a valuable treasure and become rich overnight. Regardless who you are, you make no exception. Unfortunately, for most people this is a dream that will never come true. A small percentage, however, do make it a reality. Today you will become aware of 10 of them.
In this post, you will learn about 10 of the greatest treasures recently found around the world.
- Island of Gold
There are tales of fire-belching volcanoes, Hindi speaking parrots and man-eating snakes in the Musi River near Palembang, Indonesia. They call it the “Lost Island of Gold” where artifacts such as Buddhist statues, Chinese porcelain and gold rings have been found at the bottom of the Indonesian river. These treasures first emerged shimmering in the sand at a construction site in 2011 and the workers along with fishermen began moonlighting as amateur divers. They drudged up coins, tools, golden swords, ruby rings, wine jugs and a host of other items. Scholars believe that these treasures are from the lost city of Srivijaya from the mid-16th century. There has not been any official archaeological digs and the looting has continued. Many private collectors have purchased these items on the global antiquities market.
- Islamic Coins
A collection of ancient Islamic coins was found by the local region of Sharjah Archaeology Authority (SAA) in the central region of the Emirate of Sharjah. These coins dated back to the Abbasid Caliphate period and denote rare silver dirhams and among them was a copper penny. This extraordinary collection bears the icons of that era represented by five Caliphs: Caliph Abu Jaafar Al-Mansur, Caliph Muhammad Al-Mahdi, Caliph Harun Al-Rashid, Caliph Muhammad Al-Amin and Caliph Abu Jaafar Abdullah Al-Mamoun, with a solid dirham for Mrs. Zubaydah (Umm Jaafar). Harun al-Rashid’s wife. The treasure was discovered during an excavation in September of 2021.
- Second Zawichost-Trojcy, Poland Hoard
Researchers discovered two coins that matched previously discovered coins when they returned to the site in Zawichost-Trojcy, Poland. In addition to the coins, they found a bone comb, ceramic vessel pieces, a well-maintained denar of Wladyslaw the Exile and 615 Boleslaw Kedzierzawy denarii. The hoard of a dozen coins date from the 10th to 12 centuries AD and are being conserved. Depictions have already been identified as Emperor’s Otto I and Otto III, Empress Adelaide of Italy and Anglo-Saxon coins from England. A total of 140 coins were found by the researchers across the entire survey.
- Old Ammunition Round Filled with Money
In October of 2021, two sisters in Lansing, Michigan were cleaning out their 89-year-old Aunt’s home when they came across an ammunition round thought to be from the WWI-era. They contacted the Michigan state police and the bomb squad determined that the rounds in the military relic were not live. Much to their surprise, the ammunition round was filled with bills and coins dating back to the 1800s and early 1900s. The police commandeered the artillery shell, took pictures to post on social media but the family was allowed to keep the treasure. The sisters plan to put the money towards their aunt’s nursing home care after they establish the value of their discovery. Although they don’t know exactly what it is worth, it is a big payday for them.
- Buried Stolen Treasures
Charles Cartwright found a treasure in Worcestershire, England worth thousands on his very first treasure hunt as a metal detectorist. Medieval and Bronze Age pieces, Viking and Roma jewelry as well as Egyptian relics were all part of his discovery. Unlike many finds, this buried treasure had only been there a few years because they were stolen in 2017 when a home was burglarized. There is still an ongoing investigation to find the thief and the pieces have been returned to the owners.
- Loch Lomond Gold Ring
Metal detectorist Michelle Vall has found a gold treasure worth thousands of dollars for the second time. While using her metal detector in Balloch, Loch Lomond, Scotland in January of 2019, she found a 17th century ring that sold at an auction for $18,000. A noble of King James II of England is believed to have once owned the ring. Michelle Vall first struck gold when she discovered a rare coin in 2017 that was sold at an auction for $52,800.
- Roman Statue Discovery
During an excavation at a Norman church in Mandeville, Buckinghamshire, England, a team of archaeologists discovered a rare collection of three Roman statues that was thought to be the Anglo-Saxon tower foundation. One of the statues was a stone head of a child and the other two were the head and torso of a male child and a female adult. The archaeologists found several other items which included cremation urns, a well-preserved hexagonal glass Roman jug, Roman roof tiles and painted wall plaster. They also found poetry, Saxon Coins and archaeologist believe that the Norman church is a Roman Mausoleum.
- Hildesheim Treasure
An amazing discovery was made on Galgenberg Hill in Hildesheim Germany approximately two meters below the ground and is called the Hildesheim Treasure. This treasure consisted of about 70 solid silver vessels elegantly constructed for drinking and eating. They believe that these containers dated back to 1st century AD and were part of the table service for Publius Quinctilius Varus, a military Roman Commander in Germania. There are some people that think the treasure could have been war spoils instead. The items found were goblets, egg-holders, saltcellars, trays, tureens, and plates as well as other relics. One of the most notable items was the so-called Minerva Bowl depicting the Goddess Athena wearing a graceful robe and her battle headgear.
- Judith Beheading Holofernes
In 2014, the owners of a loft in Toulouse, France went to the attic to investigate a leak in the roof of and found what is thought to be the second version painting of Judith Beheading Holofernes that was created by Italian master Caravaggio. This piece was valued at $170 million and was sold at a private sale for an undisclosed price just two days before it was scheduled to go to auction. The painting that was kept in an attic for 100 years or more has now left French soil and auctioneers say that it sold for a very good price.
- Celtic Pot of Gold
Forty-four Celtic gold coins were found near the city of Linz, Austria in 2016 which may have been made in an area known as Bohemia (currently Czech Republic) sometime during the Iron Age. They do not believe the coins originated in Austria and think that some type of trade landed them there. The coins were not in a container or bag at the time of discovery however, since they were very close together they must have been contained in one place at some point.
