Two hikers exploring the Krkonose Mountains in the Czech Republic have stumbled upon a remarkable treasure — a collection of gold coins and jewelry believed to be around 100 years old. Experts estimate the discovery to be worth more than $680,000 (C$940,000).
The Museum of East Bohemia in Hradec Králové confirmed the find in a recent Facebook post. The gold coins were wrapped in black fabric and hidden inside an aluminum jar, which the hikers noticed sticking out of a stone wall.
Miroslav Novak, head of the museum’s archaeological department, said the jar contained 598 gold coins. He estimated their value at approximately 7.5 million Czech crowns, or about $340,000.
Nearby, the hikers also found a second cache. It was a metal box filled with 16 tobacco bags, 10 gold bracelets, a mesh handbag, a comb, and a chain with a key. If made of solid gold, these items could also be worth around $340,000, Novak said.
A Rare Find from the 20th Century
This discovery is one of several important archaeological finds in the Czech Republic in recent years. Others include a 3,600-year-old Bronze Age treasure uncovered in 2023 and a cache of 14th-century gold coins found in 2020.
However, most finds in the region are ancient. In contrast, this newly discovered treasure likely dates back just a century. The newest coin in the collection is from 1921, suggesting the hoard was buried sometime after that year.
The museum said that many coins date from between 1808 and 1915. Some carry small countermarks believed to have been added in Yugoslavia during the 1920s, after World War I.
Around half of the coins come from Western European countries like France and Belgium. The rest originate from the Balkans, the Ottoman Empire, Russia, Tunisia, and other parts of Africa. None of the coins were in circulation in the Czech region where they were found.
Experts are still examining the non-coin items to confirm whether they are made of solid gold.
Theories Behind the Hidden Treasure
The identity of the treasure’s owner remains unknown. However, some historians believe it may be linked to the mass migration from Bohemia — now the western part of the Czech Republic — after Nazi Germany invaded in 1938.
Another theory is that a German soldier may have buried the items while fleeing at the end of World War II in 1945, according to museum director Petr Grulich.
Martin Vesely, a history professor at Jan Evangelista Purkyne University, told The New York Times that the region experienced significant population movements during the war years. He said this makes it difficult to determine who originally hid the treasure.
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