A Carlos III escudoPosted on 09/23/2009 6:52:54 AM PDT by BGHater
13 gold coins have been found, wrapped together, by the river in Córdoba
If you know where to look, buried treasure can still be found in Spain. The latest find was not however thanks to a map marked with an ‘X’, but came as part of an archaeological excavation as part of new drainage works in Córdoba, close to the famous Roman Bridge in the city centre.
13 gold coins, escudos, from the reign of Carlos III, dated from 1776 to 1801, and wrapped in a cloth, were found under a layer of limestone which has kept them in a perfect condition for more than two centuries. Each escudo weighs 27 grams and has a diameter of 36mm.
El País reports that Enrique León, the head of the archaeological team, thinks that the coins could have been deliberately hidden ahead of the French invasion, led by General Dupont which pillaged the city in July 1808. However he thinks the hiding place, next to the river, is a surprising one, as the area is thought to have been used as a rubbish tip at the time.
The mystery that will remain is why the person who hid the coins never returned to dig them up. Or perhaps he did but could not find them.
A Carlos III escudo
Matt Foley?
Or perhaps they fell out of someone’s pocket while they were emptying the trash. As far as remaining in perfect condition - gold does not oxidize or otherwise corrode. When gold coins are recovered from wrecks they sometimes have coral or shellfish attached to them or accreting them together, but other than that they are generally unaffected by their environment.
Could have been hid by refugees, partisans, highwaymen, or vagrants living near the rubbish tip. I’ll bet on highwaymen.
Oh, so that’s where I lost them!
GGG ping
People who “empty the trash” do not have 13 escudos on them. That was an ENORMOUS amount of money at the time - more than a year’s wages for most folks.
Did they find any rich, Corinthian leather?
Must've slipped beneath the seats...
Wouldn’t 13 gold coins have been a huge fortune at that time, the life savings of a merchant, and unlikely to have been dropped accidentally, or even carried out of the house?
LOL...see my #9...
that’s a major LoL there.
“... hidden ahead of the French invasion, led by General Dupont which pillaged the city in July 1808.”
It is really interesting.
There was a lot of fierce fighting back and forth during the French occupation of the Peninsula.
That fight is one of the first on record of actual guerilla warfare as we understand it in modern terms. Spain, at that time, was a backward and very poorly governed place where banditry was typical and widely tolerated. In addition to this, during the French occupation, the peninsula was crawling with soldiers of both sides (French officers as well as lower ranks looted at will), deserters from both sides, the usual home grown-bandits, profiteers and actually anyone who wanted to capitalize on the chaos and disorder to steal or otherwise appropriate valuables.
Anyone who buries gold usually has come by it illicitly and I bet the coins were buried by a soldier or bandit who looted them and didn’t live to return for them.
A Carlos III escudo
Just in case the image fails above.
Cash for clunker program ?
Good heavens, I remember watching that commercial!
Too Bad! My family emigrated from Spain to Sicily in 1488 so I guess it ain’t mine!
LOL...I remember riding in my uncle's Cordoba!
13 coins. Must be a slow news cycle.
Perhaps the French made him dead?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.