The Discovery of Ancient Gold Coins at Notion: A 2400-Year-Old Treasure

The Lost Treasure of Notion

It is the late fifth century B.C., and a weary mercenary soldier finds himself kneeling in the humble confines of his quarters, meticulously digging a hole in the earthen floor. In this makeshift hiding place, he places a small jug known as an olpe, intended for the safekeeping of his hard-earned savings. Inside the olpe lie numerous gold coins, referred to as darics, each coin representing a month’s worth of pay.

However, fate takes an unexpected turn for the soldier — perhaps he encounters a sinister event or an unforeseen circumstance — and he ultimately fails to reclaim his hidden treasure. This stash of wealth remains undiscovered for an astonishing 2,400 years.

This intriguing scenario is one of several proposed by Christopher Ratté, an archaeologist from the University of Michigan. Ratté and his research team recently made a remarkable discovery at the ruins of Notion, an ancient city-state located in present-day Turkey. While excavating beneath the courtyard of a structure dating back to the third century B.C., the team unearthed remnants of an earlier dwelling. “The coins were buried in a corner of the older building,” Dr. Ratté explained. “We weren’t specifically searching for a pot of gold.”

Darics were primarily used as a form of payment for mercenaries and soldiers of fortune. According to Andrew Meadows, an archaeologist at the University of Oxford who was not part of the excavation team, this particular hoard is unprecedented in Asia Minor. “This is a find of the highest importance,” he remarked. “The archaeological context surrounding the hoard will significantly aid us in refining the chronology of Achaemenid gold coinage.”

The archaeological site at Notion spans an impressive 80 acres atop a scenic promontory in western Anatolia, a region that serves as a boundary between Asia and Europe. This area was home to one of the Greek-speaking communities that emerged during the early first millennium B.C., likely due to migrations across the Aegean Sea. The burial and subsequent loss of the Notion hoard occurred during a tumultuous time marked by warfare, insecurity, and the intricate power dynamics of a contested frontier.

“This situation mirrors the historical accounts found in the story of the Trojan War,” Dr. Ratté noted. “And it remains relevant today, as evidenced by the ongoing Syrian refugee crisis.” He pointed out that the small harbor located on the eastern side of the city served as a departure point for many Syrian refugees who fled across Turkey in search of safety and a better life in Europe during the refugee crisis a decade ago.