A rare archaeological discovery in Germany has attracted the attention of historians: silver coins from the beginning of the seventeenth century were found in a copper boiler, during the excavations on Gotthardt-Kirchplatz in Branddenburg An der Havel, a historical city located in northeastern Germany.
It is assumed that the treasure was hidden around 1634, during the chaos caused by the thirty years.
The discovery was possible due to a project of construction of a new annex to the Youth Gallery Sonnensegel Ev, who allowed archaeologists to research the place of a former wooden structure. The building had been abandoned and demolished in the seventeenth century, and now reveals a secret secret for almost 400 years.
In the boiler were discovered traces of coins with a diameter of about 3-4 cm and a thickness of 1.5 mm. The first currency found was a “Dickn” issued at Zug (Switzerland), dating from 1610, with the image of Saint Oswald. This discovery caused the researchers to examine the remains removed during the excavations more carefully.
A remarkable moment was the discovery of one half of the Dutch Reichstaler from 1618 – the year of the outbreak of thirty years – by a volunteer restoring monuments. The last currency found was issued by the city of Hamburg in 1634, bearing the name of the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, Ferdinand II, who was also king of Bohemia.
The wide geographical spread of the coins – from Switzerland, through the Rhine region, to Hamburg – raises important questions. Why were only three coins buried in such a big boiler? And what made people hide them?
In addition to coins, the excavations revealed other traces of the historical use of the place. Fragments of colored metal sheets, small pieces of slag and mower drops suggest that in the house a metallurg craftsman or a belt manufacturer has lived and worked. These indications provide a rare opportunity to understand the crafts practiced at the beginning of the seventeenth century.
Even in older layers, traces of a prehistoric settlement of the post-glacial period were discovered. Also, soils were kept dating from the 12th century, which suggests that the church on Gotthardt was initially built on a raised land. The medieval cemetery associated with it stretched throughout the current buildings and was used for a longer period than it was believed. Notable is the fact that the oldest funeral discovered was in a coffin dusted from the trunk of a tree of Slavic origin.
This rare silver discovery adds a new chapter in the rich history of Brandenburg. However, she leaves questions about life during the thirty-year war and about the people who lived on Gotthardt-Kirchplatz and hid their treasures.
Even though the coins are few, they, together with the copper boiler in which they were hidden, create a strong connection with an era of war, uncertainty and struggle for survival. Their discovery arouses not only scientific interest, but also a deep fascination for the mysterious past of Brandenburg.
