Over 900 gleaming gold coins. A mystery over 2,000 years in the making. Unearthed in the village of Great Baddow near Chelmsford, Essex, The Great Baddow Hoard is the largest discovery of Iron Age gold coins ever found in Britain. Buried deep in the earth during the Late Iron Age - around the same time Julius Caesar was launching his first invasions of Britain - this incredible collection of decorated staters is being revealed to the world in a brand new exhibition at the Museum of Chelmsford.
In this exclusive new documentary, History Hit’s Tristan Hughes heads to the museum to investigate this extraordinary discovery. Alongside curator Claire Willetts, he gets special access to examine the coins up close and unpick their hidden history. Together, they explore the wider context of the discovery and tackle the great lingering mystery: why was this massive fortune buried in the Essex countryside, and did Julius Caesar’s arrival in Britain at roughly the same time spark its concealment?
But that’s not all. Iron Age coins can tell us a lot about the people who made them. Joining forces with Dr. Eleanor Ghey of the British Museum, Tristan explores the intricate and breathtaking iconography stamped into the gold - from abstract heads of Apollo and winged horses to several mysterious, unexplained outliers. Discover what these ancient treasures reveal about the powerful, sophisticated society that minted them.
The exhibition, Timeless Treasure: The Great Baddow Hoard, is now open at the Museum of Chelmsford.
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