Diameter: 14.500 cm (pot)

CM 1983.3-30.1-872

Room 49: Roman Britain

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Roman Treasures

Hoard of Iceni silver coins

Deposited about AD 60-61
Found at Field Baulk, March, Cambridgeshire (1982)

This tour introduces you to just some of the amazing treasures from Roman Britain now in the British Museum.

The Roman emperor Claudius invaded Britain successfully in AD 43, but for years afterwards he still faced problems. 17 years later, in AD 60-61, Queen Boudica of the Iceni tribe of East Anglia led a fierce rebellion against the Romans that they only just managed to put down.

This hoard of 872 silver coins is the the largest single Icenian find known. The coins were buried underground in a pot, maybe to keep them safe during the troubled times of Boudica's revolt. For whatever reason, the owner never came back to get them.