Ancient gold treasure unearthed in Netherlands
How many of you have read Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island and desired to embark upon an adventure seeking hidden treasure all around the globe? Almost everyone! Yes, that’s how thrilling the term ‘treasure’ is. Now, what if we told you that recently, some millenia-old, buried treasure was unearthed by a Dutch historian? Yes, Lorenzo Ruijter, aged 27, who has been hunting treasure since he was 10 years old, has finally found an entire treasure trove near the small Dutch city called Hoogwoud, located to the north of Netherlands. It consisted of four golden ear pendants, two strips of gold leaf, and 39 silver coins, as reported by the Dutch National Museum of Antiquities that has been overseeing Ruijter’s quest. What’s strange is that this time around, Ruijter wasn’t really looking for treasure, rather some other less valuable metals, which is why he was using a metal detector. But as fate would have it, he came upon the buried gold.
While Ruijter is thrilled that his secret is out and can now be shared with the world (he called it “an expensive and cherished possession”), experts from the National Museum of Antiquities are still conducting analysis. In fact, they have cited that they need more time to clean, investigate and properly date the treasure’s items. For now, they have revealed that the youngest coin they could find can be traced back to 1250 AD which made them conclude that it was around the same time the treasure was buried. The jewellery, by then, were already two centuries older.
The experts also believe that it was a real-life pirate or an explorer who hid the treasure as gold jewellery from the High Middle Age was extremely unlikely in Netherlands. They have also considered that it may have been during the war years in the middle of the 13th century when several Dutch regions were in conflict with each other, especially West Friesland and Holland. Interestingly, the treasure site, aka, Hoogwoud, is at the epicentre.
For those wondering what will happen to the treasure, it will be on loan to the museum until thorough research is done, after which it will display it for the public. Later, it will be returned to the finder and will remain his official property as per the Dutch law.