The Coins' Story
Every coin tells a story. If you look closely at any coin, whether it is a modern euro or an Anglo-Saxon penny, you may see images of rulers, gods and inscriptions in Latin or another language. All these features are significant.
What can we learn from the Chessington coins? What is the real story behind their loss or burial?
This is what we already know:
- They were found in Chessington
- They were made in the area of Northern France or Belgium (Gaul).
- They date from about 150 to 50 BC, so they are just over 2000 years old.
- In Britain this is in the period known as the Iron Age
- The coins are all 70% gold
- They are of differing sizes
- They have the head of the god Apollo on the front (obverse) and a horse and wheel, denoting a chariot, on the back (reverse).
- During the Iron Age there were small settlements or farms in the area
- There are a lot of unanswered questions. Who was the last owner of the coins? How did that person come by them? Was the owner a man or a woman? young or old, rich or poor?
A merchant?
The coins may have belonged to a trader. If so they could have acquired them through trade with Gaul. There was a healthy trade between Britain and Gaul at the time the coins would have been struck. Perhaps the coins passed through many hands, pockets and purses before they reached Chessington. Did the coins see the finest places, belonging to the noblest people in Europe? Were they given as a gift? Did a Roman ever own them? What were they exchanged for? When the coins were in Britain, did they travel from place to place, such as Hengistbury Head or Danebury Hill Fort?
A warrior?
The owner may have been a warrior who had fought against the Romans in Gaul. While Julius Caesar was invading Gaul, British warriors were employed to fight on Gaul's side. These Iron Age mercenaries would have been paid quite well for their services, perhaps with gold coins like these. If this was the case, the warrior would have faced Julius Caesar's soldiers and possibly even seen the General.
A leader?
Was the owner a powerful leader who needed the coins to buy swords, shields, spears and chariots to fight the Romans? Was he or she preparing for a Roman invasion? This leader could have been involved in conflict with other tribes in Britain. It might have been the tribe called the Atrebates who owned the territory where the coins were found. Before the Roman conquest (53 AD), the whole territory between what is today West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire was the territory of the Atrebates. There were other tribes nearby, such as the Cantiaci in northern Kent and the Durotriges who were centred in Dorset, but also found in southern parts of Wiltshire and Somerset. The different tribes of Britain were well known for fighting one another, so strong warriors and good weapons were very important to a leader.
Is this how the coins got to Chessington? Think of the adventures of a warrior leader who survived many battles and skirmishes and returned to his or her homeland with wealth. Did he or she own the land in Chessington or buy it with this wealth?
Hidden?
Were the coins buried deliberately or lost just as we might lose a coin nowadays? Perhaps it was safe, so that the owner could collect them later, like a bank account. Maybe the coins were hidden there in an emergency. The owner might have panicked and expected the Roman army to appear over the horizon. Or was there tribal fighting? Was the owner killed, or taken into slavery leaving the coins resting there for 2000 years? Perhaps the coins' location was forgotten. Perhaps they were left deliberately as a religious offering to a Celtic God.
Discovered!
Why do you think the coins were only 4 inches below the surface of the soil and easily discovered? Was it due to centuries of ploughing or modern disturbance that brought them near to the top? What is the importance of proper archaeological investigation and recording when objects like these are found? Careful examination of all the evidence in the area tells us a lot about how people lived in past times. So every item and scrap of evidence found is just as valuable as these gold coins.