A hoard or "wealth deposit" is an archaeological term for a collection of valuable objects or artifacts , sometimes purposely buried in the ground, in which case it is sometimes also known as a cache . This would usually be with the intention of later recovery by the hoarder; hoarders sometimes died or were unable to return for other reasons (forgetfulness or physical displacement from its location) before retrieving the hoard, and these surviving hoards might then be uncovered much later by metal detector hobbyists, members of the public, and archaeologists .
23-526: The Shillington Hoard is a Roman coin hoard found in Shillington, Bedfordshire in 1998. It consisted of 127 gold aurei , the latest of which was from 79 AD. The coins were issued by Tiberius , Claudius , Nero , Galba , Otho , Vitellius , and Vespasian . Metal detectorists Shane Pyper and Simon Leete discovered 123 aurei in October 1998. They also found a much smaller hoard of seven silver denarii
46-599: A Romano-Celtic temple . They are now on display at the Wardown Park Museum in Luton . 51°58′12″N 0°21′47″W / 51.970°N 0.363°W / 51.970; -0.363 Coin hoard Hoards provide a useful method of providing dates for artifacts through association as they can usually be assumed to be contemporary (or at least assembled during a decade or two), and therefore used in creating chronologies. Hoards can also be considered an indicator of
69-405: A few metres away. In September 1999, Pyper and Leete found a further four aurei and eleven denarii , making a total of 127 aurei and 18 denarii . Ten of the denarii are Republican , and one was of Hadrian from 128 AD, so the relationship between the gold and silver hoards is uncertain. The coins appear to have been deposited without intention of recovery, perhaps as a votive offering at
92-509: A fictional device. There are cases of buried treasure from different historical periods, such as the Dacian king Decebalus and Visigoth king Alaric I , who both changed the course of rivers to hide their treasures. Legends of buried pirate treasure have existed for centuries, but authenticated discoveries are rare. For example, extensive excavations on Oak Island, Nova Scotia have not yielded any treasure. The only authenticated treasure chest in
115-570: A rerouted river. There are a number of reports of supposed buried pirate treasure that surfaced much earlier than these works, indicating that the idea was around for more than a century before those stories were published. For example, extensive excavation has taken place on Oak Island (in Nova Scotia ) since 1795 in the belief that one or more pirate captains had hidden large amounts of valuables there. These excavations were said to have been prompted by still older legends of buried pirate treasure in
138-414: A temple or church become the property of that institution, and may be used to its benefit. Buried treasure Buried treasure is a literary trope commonly associated with depictions of pirates , alongside Vikings , criminals , and Old West outlaws . According to popular conception, these people often buried their stolen fortunes in remote places, intending to return to them later (often with
161-648: Is a collection of personal objects buried for safety in times of unrest. A hoard of loot is a buried collection of spoils from raiding and is more in keeping with the popular idea of " buried treasure ". Votive hoards are different from the above in that they are often taken to represent permanent abandonment, in the form of purposeful deposition of items, either all at once or over time for ritual purposes, without intent to recover them . Furthermore, votive hoards need not be "manufactured" goods, but can include organic amulets and animal remains. Votive hoards are often distinguished from more functional deposits by
184-524: Is kept at the Pirate Soul Museum in St. Augustine, Florida . Pirate Olivier Levasseur , also known as "The Buzzard" (La Buse), was rumored to have hidden treasure before his death in 1730. No such treasure has been found. During the 1666 Great Fire of London , wealthy residents of the city buried luxury goods such as gold and wine in the ground to protect them from the raging flames above. Samuel Pepys ,
207-565: The United States is kept at the Pirate Soul Museum in St. Augustine, Florida. Buried treasure is a cultural concept and not the same as a hoard , which is typically found by archaeologists and metal detectors. The Fenn treasure , reportedly buried by millionaire Forrest Fenn in 2010, was found in 2020 in Wyoming. Pirates burying treasure was rare. The only pirate known to have actually buried treasure
230-498: The antiquities market, it often happens that miscellaneous objects varying in date and style have become attached to the original group. Such "dealer's hoards" can be highly misleading, but better understanding of archaeology amongst collectors, museums and the general public is gradually making them less common and more easily identified. Hoards may be of precious metals , coinage , tools or less commonly, pottery or glass vessels. There are various classifications depending on
253-526: The area. No treasure has yet been reported found. The Treasure of Lima is a supposed buried treasure on Cocos Island in the Pacific abandoned by pirates. The treasure, estimated to be worth £160 million, was stolen by British Captain William Thompson in 1820 after he was entrusted to transport it from Peru to Mexico. The only authenticated treasure chest in the United States, once owned by Thomas Tew ,
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#1732897828803276-432: The idea of treasure maps leading to buried treasure "is an entirely fictional device". Stevenson's Treasure Island was directly influenced by Irving's "Wolfert Webber," Stevenson saying in his preface, "It is my debt to Washington Irving that exercises my conscience, and justly so, for I believe plagiarism was rarely carried farther... the whole inner spirit and a good deal of the material detail of my first chapters... were
299-475: The map or information to a friend or shipmate, usually on his deathbed. This person would then go search in vain for the treasure, but not before transferring the legend down to another hapless seeker. The Roman historian Dio Cassius says that, in the early 2nd century, the Dacian king Decebalus had changed the course of the river Sargetia and buried tons of gold and silver in the riverbed. Later, he ordered
322-422: The nature of the goods themselves (from animal bones to diminutive artifacts), the places buried (being often associated with watery places, burial mounds and boundaries), and the treatment of the deposit (careful or haphazard placement and whether ritually destroyed/broken). Valuables dedicated to the use of a deity (and thus classifiable as "votive") were not always permanently abandoned. Valuable objects given to
345-439: The nature of the hoard: A founder's hoard contains broken or unfit metal objects, ingots , casting waste, and often complete objects, in a finished state. These were probably buried with the intention to be recovered at a later time. A merchant's hoard is a collection of various functional items which, it is conjectured, were buried by a traveling merchant for safety, with the intention of later retrieval. A personal hoard
368-472: The noted diarist, buried a wheel of cheese in his garden to protect it from the fire. Buried treasure is not the same as a hoard , of which there have been thousands of examples found by archaeologists and metal detectors. Buried treasure is as much a cultural concept as an objective thing. It is related to pirates and other criminals who leave stolen artifacts behind for later retrieval, typically in remote places like islands, sometimes with maps leading back to
391-466: The property of Washington Irving." In 1911, American author Ralph D. Paine conducted a survey of all known or purported stories of buried treasure and published them in The Book of Buried Treasure . He found a common trait in all the stories: there was always a lone survivor of a piratical crew who somehow preserved a chart showing where the treasure was buried, but unable to return himself, he transfers
414-875: The relative degree of unrest in ancient societies. Thus conditions in 5th and 6th century Britain spurred the burial of hoards, of which the most famous are the Hoxne Hoard , Suffolk; the Mildenhall Treasure , the Fishpool Hoard , Nottinghamshire, the Water Newton hoard, Cambridgeshire, and the Cuerdale Hoard , Lancashire, all preserved in the British Museum . Prudence Harper of the Metropolitan Museum of Art voiced some practical reservations about hoards at
437-554: The river to be restored, and the slaves involved in the works to be executed. However, one of his nobles revealed the treasure's location to the Romans. The Byzantine historian Jordanes tells a similar story of the burial of the Visigoth king Alaric I and his treasure under the river Busento in 410. The burial places of the Khazar kings ( qoruq ) and other inner Asian people were also under
460-690: The time of the Soviet exhibition of Scythian gold in New York City in 1975. Writing of the so-called "Maikop treasure" (acquired from three separate sources by three museums early in the twentieth century, the Berliner Museen , the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology , and the Metropolitan Museum, New York), Harper warned: By the time "hoards" or "treasures" reach museums from
483-405: The use of a pirate’s treasure map ). Pirates burying treasure was a rare occurrence, with the only known instance being William Kidd , who buried some of his wealth on Gardiners Island . The myth of buried pirate treasure was popularized by such 19th-century fiction as Wolfert Webber , The Gold-Bug , and Treasure Island . The idea of treasure maps leading to buried treasure is considered
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#1732897828803506-423: Was William Kidd , who is believed to have buried at least some of his wealth on Gardiners Island near Long Island before sailing into New York City . Kidd had originally been commissioned as a privateer for England , but his behavior had strayed into outright piracy, and he hoped that his treasure could serve as a bargaining chip in negotiations to avoid punishment. His bid was unsuccessful, however, and Kidd
529-584: Was hanged as a pirate. In English fiction, there are three well-known stories that helped to popularize the myth of buried pirate treasure: " Wolfert Webber " (1824) by Washington Irving , " The Gold-Bug " (1843) by Edgar Allan Poe and Treasure Island (1883) by Robert Louis Stevenson . These stories differ widely in plot and literary treatment but are all based on the William Kidd legend. David Cordingly states that "The effect of Treasure Island on our perception of pirates cannot be overestimated," and says
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