An important collection of ancient silver coins has been discovered on the Mediterranean island of Pantelleria, located between Sicily and Tunisia. Archaeologists from the University of Tübingen in Germany have unearthed 27 Roman silver coins, known as “denarii”, dating back more than 2,000 years. The coins were found hidden in a hole in the wall during excavations at the Acropolis of St. Theresa and St. Mark. Some of these coins feature the profile of a human head, which remains unidentified.
Pirate attack theory
The coins are believed to have been hidden during one of the many pirate raids that plagued the region around 94-74 BC, a period when the Roman Republic ruled. The discovery came after the soil at the site slipped due to rainy weather, revealing part of the cache. The rest of the coins were found under a rock. According to archaeologist Thomas Schäfer, the coins could have been hidden by locals during a pirate attack.
Pirates frequently attacked the coastal areas of the eastern Mediterranean until the Roman general Gnaeus Pompey Magnus, known as Pompey the Great, defeated them in 67 BC.
Roman ruins and earlier discoveries
The discovery of these coins occurred close to an earlier find: the heads of three Roman statues. These marble heads included representations of Julius Caesar, the Emperor Titus (who ruled from 79 to 81 AD) and a woman who could be Agrippina the Elder, granddaughter of Augustus, or Antonia the Younger, daughter of Mark Antony.
The archaeological Site, once a Roman settlement known as Cossyra or Cossura, remains intact and features a meeting area known as a “comitium.” Only five such sites have been found in Italy, making it an important and well-preserved find.