Metal detectorist finds the oldest Celtic gold coin ever recorded

In July 2025, a certified metal detectorist uncovered a 2,200-year-old Celtic gold coin in a farm field near Gundorf, northwest of Leipzig. It is recognized as the oldest coin ever discovered in the German state of Saxony.

The tiny coin, smaller than a modern penny, turned out to be a rare piece of imported money. It has reshaped how archaeologists picture early trade in Saxony.

The new gold coin links farming communities near Leipzig to distant Celtic groups, hundreds of miles away, long before Roman armies reached central Europe.

Why this tiny gold coin matters

The work of interpreting the find is led by Dr. Regina Smolnik, state archaeologist for Saxony at the State Office for Archaeology (LfA).

Her research focuses on prehistoric archaeology, the study of past human life through material remains. She emphasizes the importance of protecting historic sites across the region.

Until recently, only a handful of Celtic gold pieces had ever turned up in Saxony, which sits outside the core Celtic homelands.

Finding one in such good condition hints at regular cross-border contacts between local communities and traders from the west.

Stylistic comparisons date the Gundorf piece to the third century BCE, a time when Celtic gold coins were beginning to appear widely.

That early date means coins had reached Saxony centuries before the advent of Roman control. This stretches the region’s monetary story further back than scholars once believed.

Finding the Celtic gold coin

The piece weighs two grams, about the weight of a dime, and is classified as a “quarter stater”, a small Celtic gold denomination.

Rather than being loose change, this gold coin would have signaled serious wealth for whoever first carried it into Saxony.

On one side, the coin shows a stylized animal head with eyes, horns, and a rounded forehead. It is most likely to represent a stag.

The other side shows an open neck ring with thickened ends, a star with rounded corners, and a sphere arranged in a compact pattern.

The designs echo motifs from earlier Greek coins. However, Celtic artists broke them into curves and dots, turning realistic images into almost abstract art.

Because the Gundorf piece is so well preserved, design details help specialists reconstruct who made it and how it traveled.

From legend to lucky charm

Bowl-shaped coins like this are called “regenbogenschüsselchen” in German, which translates into the English name rainbow cups. These concave-shaped Celtic coins were historically linked with luck.

People once said treasure would appear where a rainbow touched the ground, perhaps because rain sometimes washed these coins out of freshly plowed fields.

Recent finds of plain rainbow cups in Brandenburg and a decorated example in Bavaria show how far such pieces traveled across Europe.

Together with the Gundorf coin, they suggest a web of long-distance exchange that linked Celtic territories to farming villages well beyond their homeland.

Trading across Iron Age Europe

The Celts did not live in a single country. Instead, they formed many Iron Age communities scattered across what is now France, Germany, Britain, and neighboring regions.

Celtic merchants and migrants moved along river valleys and land routes, carrying metal, salt, wine, and coins to places that never minted their own.

In many Celtic regions, coinage served less as everyday currency and more as a prestige item used in gifts and at feasts. That pattern fits the Gundorf coin. It shows little wear and seems made to be treasured rather than passed from hand to hand.

Specialists link the coin’s style to mints in northern Bohemia in the Czech Republic. It is likely that it traveled north along rivers into Saxony.

Each such object marks a path of contact, from gift exchange to payment for goods. Such journeys joined far flung communities into overlapping economic worlds.

Lessons from this Celtic gold coin

The discovery of the gold coin began with Daniel Fest, a trained metal detectorist. He reports his finds to Saxony’s archaeological authorities instead of keeping them to himself.

By flagging the spot and depth of the object, he allowed professionals to record layers and traces before the coin left the ground.

“The gold coin is a tangible piece of our history and provides new insights into trade with the Celts,” said Barbara Klepsch. As Saxony’s culture and tourism minister, she helped present the find to the public in Dresden. .

The coin will live in a museum collection, where specialists can continue their analyses. It is on display to visitors, who can see a piece of early European money.

Its journey from inches below a farm field to a museum display shows how everyday curiosity and careful reporting can rewrite regional history.

Information from Archaeology News.

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