| "Muddy hoard" | |
| Material: | Roman Coins, Roman Pottery |
| Size: | Pottery shards, 9724 Roman Coins |
| Discovered Date: | Monday 30th April 2018 - Tuesday 15th May 2018 |
| Discovered Place: | Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, England |
| Place: |
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| Classification: | Treasure |
| Id: | CAM-A0ECFB |
| Culture: | Romano-British |
| Created: | 274 |
The Muddy Hoard is a Roman British coin hoard found in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, dating to approximately the year 274, during the joint reign of Tetricus I, and his son, Tetricus II of the Gallic Empire, a breakaway state of the Roman Empire during the reign of Aurelian.[1]
It is considered by far the largest coin hoard in Cambridgeshire County, England.[2]
Declared "Treasure" under the Coroner's Inquest on November 11, 2021, it is exhibited at the Norris Museum in St Ives, Cambridgeshire from September 16, 2023, temporarily for six months, until the museum acquires enough funding for its permanent acquisition.[3]
On April 30, 2018, a metal detectorist in the town of Huntingdon, was searching on private land under the permission of the landowner, where he unearthed a copper-alloy coin. After a few more coins emerged from the ground, the detectorist covered up the find to report it under the Portable Antiquities Scheme, whereupon the find liaison officer of Cambridgeshire, Helen Fowler, and Dr. Andrew Brown of the British Museum conducted a two-day excavation of the hoard.[4]
Under the PAS, it is designated CAM-A0ECFB under Treasure Tracking Number 2018T317.
The hoard is considered partially disturbed, and was initially discovered scattered out. It is composed of two ceramic vessels, one inside another, nestled like matryoshka dolls. The outer vessel was a coarse, grey ware vessel, the inner pot made of dark gray, finer clay. It was determined that with the weight of the coins that the inner pot cracked, requiring the addition of the outer pot to contain rest of the stash. The hoard itself was otherwise mostly intact, with no indicating archaeological features surrounding the land.
After separation of the coins at the British Museum, it was determined to be made of 9724 Roman coins, a mixture of Antoninianii, Barbarous radiates, and 3 denarii, including an unrecorded denarius variant of Tetricus I.
The hoard has a high proportion of radiates, which were made during the short supply of official coinage and turbulence of the Gallic Empire, a result of the Crisis of the Third Century. By the time the hoard was buried, Tetricus I surrendered to Aurelian, who then reunited the Roman Empire.[5]
The hoard contains the coinage portraiture of 14 Emperors and 1 Empress.
| Volusianus | 251-3 | 1 | Central | |
| Valerian (emperor) | 253-60 | 8 | Central | |
| Valerian/Gallienus (joint reign) | 253-60 | 4 | Central | |
| Salonina (joint) | 253-60 | 18 | Central | |
| Saloninus | 258-60 | 1 | Central | |
| Divus Valerian II | 3 | Central | ||
| Gallienus | 260-8 | 859 + 2 denarii | Central | |
| Salonina | 260-8 | 76 | Central | |
| Claudius II | 268-70 | 766 | Central | |
| Divus Claudius II | 132 | Central | ||
| Quintillus | 270 | 72 | Central | |
| Aurelian | 270-5 | 8 (pre-reform) | Central | |
| Unknown | 6 | Central | ||
| Postumus | 260-9 | 107 | Gallic | |
| Laelian | 269 | 5 | Gallic | |
| Marcus Aurelius Marius | 269 | 17 | Gallic | |
| Victorinus | 269-71 | 1817 | Gallic | |
| Divus Victorinus | 4 | Gallic | ||
| Tetricus I | 271-4 | 2981 + 1 denarius | Gallic | |
| Tetricus II | 271-4 | 1281 | Gallic | |
| Irregular Radiates | 998 | |||
| Unknown Emperors (Fragments) | 6 |