The mundane work of clearing grass and stones in a backyard has led to the discovery of Denmark’s largest known hoard of Viking Age silver.
The finder, a man based in the northern Danish municipality of Rebild who wishes to remain anonymous, was preparing his garden for the construction of a new terrace when he came across the silver treasure, consisting of around 700 pieces, according to Danish cultural organization Nordjyske Museer, or North Jutland Museums.
Among the pieces were a small Thor’s hammer, bracelets, many silver bars, cut-up objects and 47 coins, some whole and some fragmented, the museums group said in a statement.
“It should have just been a few hours of hard gardening work removing stubborn grass, stones and gravel for a new tiled terrace, but it turned out to be the biggest surprise of my life,” the finder said in the statement.
“After half an hour of digging, my grip hit something that made a strange sound,” he continued. “At first I thought it was old iron or fence wire and some potsherds, but when I started digging with my hands, I was suddenly able to fish one metal object after another out of the ground. After a short period of careful work, I realized that it was jewelry, coins and silver bars.”
