Saturday, August 3, 2024

Pot filled with gold coins found in Turkey


Mercenary = bad karma.
In a groundbreaking discovery, archaeologists have unearthed a pot of gold coins in the ancient seaside city of Notion in Turkey (Türkiye).

This remarkable find offers unprecedented insights into a world 2,400 years ago during a period of significant political upheaval.

While excavating a house from the third century BC, archaeologists discovered an unexpected cache of riches intriguingly buried in its courtyard, according to The New York Times.

“The coins were buried in a corner of the older building,” stated archaeologist Christopher Ratté, a professor of classical studies at the University of Michigan, curator of the Kelsey Museum of Archaeology, and director of the Notion Archaeological Project.

“We weren’t actually looking for a pot of gold. [It's not like we're Irish or anything.]”
Andrew Meadows, an Oxford University archaeologist, although uninvolved in the project, emphasized the significance of this find, describing it as “of the highest importance.” He said no similar hoard has ever been discovered in [Anatolia or] Asia Minor.

“The archaeological context for the hoard will help us fine-tune the chronology of Achaemenid gold coinage.”

The treasure most likely belonged to a soldier [who probably stole it as booty]
Depicting a Persian king kneeling with a bow and spear, the gold coins, known as darics, were primarily used to pay soldiers of fortune [aka mercenaries]. This has led archaeologists to believe that the cache belonged to a mercenary who had to bury his gold for safekeeping [and then died, experienced the results of his soldier karma, and never even benefitted from his wages or theft].

“According to the Greek historian Xenophon, a single daric was equivalent to a soldier’s pay for one month,” added Ratté, as reported by Live Science. More

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