2017-11-08 Wed

A hoard of 186 rare, 2,500-years-old Roman coins was found in a drawer at the 14th century Scotney Castle, owned by the National Trust. The coins were discovered when volunteers were looking for photographs in the building. The coins were issued in present-day China and Syria. They were probably collected by Edward Hussey III and his son Edwy in the 19th century. Coins in the collection date back to seventh century BC Greece and ancient Rome.

It is believed that the collection was put together between the 1820s and 1890s. Most of them are Roman coins from the late second century BC to the fourth century AD. A set from the first century is only short of one coin. 18 of them are rare examples. Experts have stated that the collection is very impressive.

It is very rare to find coins of third-century emperors like Balbinus, Pupienus, and Aemilian in England, as none of them ruled for more than a year. A coin from Aegina is one of the earliest struck in Europe and features a sea turtle, which is sacred to Aphrodite. The coin dates back to 600 and 550 BC and is the only Greek-origin coin at Scotney Castle. A Welsh penny coin, forged in 1787, features a druid and the text ‘We promise to pay the bearer one penny, 1787’.

The coins are displayed in an exhibition called Inside the Collection. National Trust opened Scotney Castle 10 years back and the celebratory exhibition will be organised till 4th February between 11 am and 3 pm.