Posted on 09/12/2003 3:17:32 PM PDT by blam
Could gold be gift from Caesar
History experts believe the hoard of Iron Age gold unearthed in a Winchester field was a gift from Julius Caesar to one of Britain's first kings.
The fine gold, incredible craftsmanship and a revised date now suggest the necklaces were made in the classical world and not Britain, as previously thought.
Dr Jeremy Hill, from the British Museum, believes it was a diplomatic gift from a Roman ruler, possibly Julius Caesar or Mark Antony, to an Iron Age king living near Winchester.
According to Winchester's top archaeologist, Dick Whinney, this may explain the lack of local opposition to the Roman invasion of 43AD.
The hoard, known as the Winchester Treasure, was discovered in 2000 in a ploughed field near Owslebury by Kevan Halls, a retired florist from West End, using a metal detector. Mr Halls received £350,000 for the find, which includes two gold necklace torcs, four gold brooches and two bangles.
The story of how the treasure came to be buried in a Hampshire field is gradually being pieced together. Archaeologists had been mystified by it because nothing like it had been discovered before.
They thought it had been made by skilled local craftsman in the last century before the Roman invasion. But scientific analysis showed it was made by Roman or Hellenic craftsman between 70BC and 30BC.
Dr Hill, the British Museum's curator of Iron Age Collection, said: "I'd have liked them to be made in Britain, but they weren't. Their discovery was amazing. The new research makes them iconic objects."
Although the jewellery was made with classical techniques, they were more chunky and showy than Roman examples.
Dr Whinney, principal archaeologist for Winchester Museum Service, said: "The implication is they were made to order in a style that would be acceptable to native kings and queens, possibly to cement a friendship or encourage an alliance."
When the legions invaded, they were unopposed by local tribes, although they had the manpower and fortifications to fight. "There were no battles here. The Romans were allowed to pass through what appears to have been a client kingdom."
Dr Whinney said: "We're never going to prove the gold was a gift from Caesar or Antony. But if we take the technological evidence about the origin and craftsmanship of these items alongside the time frame, it is a good theory."
The lack of any other finds on the field, the exact location of which is being kept secret, suggests the treasure was buried as an offering to pagan gods.
It is believed the barbarian ruler may have been Commius, one of the first kings of Britain, who spent time in Roman Gaul and would probably have lived at large Iron Age settlement in Owslebury.
Winchester Museum Service organised a community dig of the site last August. Pottery and bones were unearthed, but no more treasure.
BBC Two screened a documentary on the finding of the hoard last Tuesday evening.
No, it's pitiful.
That would be more accurate. That's how Rome actually did most of it's conquering, after all : buy the leaders, then kill off the resisters. In fact, that's where Muhammad got the idea from : Rome.
1) Not currency, but coinage
2) Ever hear of billion coinage? Roman coins in base metals that were coated with silver? A popular device of the Roman Emperors, used to debase coinage (and create inflation).
3) Byzantium, on the other hand, maintained a consistent coinage from the time of Constantine to 1453. Perhaps you meant the Eastern Roman Empire.
Doubt it. More likely that it was someone's Up-Anchor stash.
Muhammad the plagiarist DID get his idea to buy off leaders by tempting them with promises and presents from Rome! He learned from HISTORY, and Rome had fallen by the time a minor moon deity became a sparkle of world conquest in Muhammad's eye!
Sheesh. Why is it people constantly have to change history??
Yeah, that too. However, if the Tuscans didn't learn that tactic independently from the Chinese then they probably learned it FROM the Chinese.
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