A Few Coin Finds

     

Ancient coins are often found in North America by accident, without much archaeological context. In an extensive survey of "Pre-Columbian Old World Coins in America" (Current Anthropology, Vol. 21 No. 1, Feb. 1980, pp. 1-20), Jeremiah F. Epstein discusses some 40 such finds. He dismisses all of them as either modern copies or, if genuine, as probable losses by modern collectors.

However, if a number of coins of similar date are found together in a hoard, or if a pattern of several coins of similar date and origin are found separately, it starts to become more likely that they were actually left in antiquity. In order to establish such patterns, it is of course necessary to record individual finds, even if by themselves they may not prove much.

In this spirit, this page presents a few coin finds that I happen to be aware of, and that are from Ohio or nearby states. Others are urged to build similar pages with other finds and to link onto this one for comparison. With the one exception of the Bar Kokhba coin, none of these finds is in Epstein's survey.


A Numidian Coin from Deer Creek, Ohio


Roman Coins from the Falls of the Ohio


     

Roman Coins from Breathitt Co., Ky.



One that "Got Away":
The Bar Kokhba Coin from Clay City, Ky.



Links

  • "The Coincidence of the Coins," Chapter 11 of In Plain Sight, by Gloria Farley.


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