Danish coins and jewelry from the 10th century have turned up in an excavation on a German island at the eastern edge of the country.
The original find, last January, by hobby archeologists led to a team of professionals excavating the 400 square meter field near the village of Schaprode on Rügen Island. The find included hundreds of rings, neckiaces, bracelets, beads and especially coins, attributed to the reign of Harald I of Denmark.
Harald, known as Bluetooth (yes, it is named for him) was the Danish king who united Danish territory and Scania, now part of Sweden, but this is believed to be the first time a significant amount of coins of his empire have been found outside its territory.
“This is the largest single find of Bluetooth coins in the southern Baltic Sea region and is therefore of outstanding importance,” according to excavation director Michael Schirren.
