Analysis of Coin Hoards from Roman BritainMaps |
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The table and maps listed below show the positions of the Roman coin finds listed in the four Treasure Reports 1997-2001.
Table: Geographic spread (all hoards) Map 1 Hoards 68 - 224 A.D. Map 2 Hoards 269 - 367 A.D. Map 3 Hoards 269 - 367 A.D. The table below shows that the county with the greatest number of finds (15) was Norfolk. By far the largest number (34) were in East Anglia, of which Norfolk is a county. There were 13 finds in Yorkshire, around the strategic city of EBVRACM (York). Map 1 shows the finds of the first 'silver' period. Although numerous, these finds cover a period of 156 years. Map 2 covers the de-based silver and bronze period from the Gallic emperors to the Constantinian period. Map 3 covers the second silver period. Not a great deal of information can be extracted from these maps. Although many finds are near Roman towns or fortifications, few are actually situated directly on them. This may indicate that hoarding was something done in the countryside, away from urban facilities such as banks, or simply that urban hoards have already been found due to re-building or scavenging for building materials. Not much can be said about the distribution of finds during different periods, except that for the final period, when hoards seem to have stretched in a semi-circle from the south-west through East Anglia to the north-east, as if facing the threat from across the Channel and North Sea. Perhaps the maps are just a reflection of the enthusiasm for metal detecting around different parts of Britain. |
Table: Geographic spread (all hoards) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Midlands (15) | London and Southeast (14) | South/West (14) | East Anglia (34) | North Country (14) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cheshire | 1 | Bedfordshire | 2 | Cornwall | 1 | Cambridgeshire | 2 | Lancashire | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Derbyshire | 1 | Berkshire | 3 | Dorset | 4 | Essex | 3 | Yorkshire | 13 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Leicestershire | 3 | Buckinghamshire | 1 | Gloucestershire | 2 | Lincolnshire | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nottinghamshire | 2 | Hampshire | 3 | Somerset | 3 | Norfolk | 15 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oxfordshire | 1 | Kent | 1 | Wiltshire | 4 | Suffolk | 8 | Wales | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Rutland | 1 | London | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Staffordshire | 3 | Surrey | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Warwickshire | 2 | Sussex | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Worcestershire | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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MAP 1
68 - 224 A.D. - 156 years - 44 hoards A123 = Treasure Report 1997/8, A123 = Treasure Report 1998/9, A123 = Treasure Report 2000, A123 = Treasure Report 2001  Large towns and cities of Roman Britain (some) |
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MAP 2
269 - 367 A.D. - 98 years - 33 hoards A123 = Treasure Report 1997/8, A123 = Treasure Report 1998/9, A123 = Treasure Report 2000, A123 = Treasure Report 2001 Large towns and cities of Roman Britain (some) |
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MAP 3
367 - 408 A.D. - 41 years - 20 hoards A123 = Treasure Report 1997/8, A123 = Treasure Report 1998/9, A123 = Treasure Report 2000, A123 = Treasure Report 2001 Large towns and cities of Roman Britain (some) |
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Table 1 Table 2 Table 3