Carlos Solis
The discovery was made during an examination of the Berenfelds swamp in the municipality of Arisdorf, near Basel. Wolfgang Niederberger and Daniel Mona, volunteer archaeologists from the “Archaeology of Basel-Land” organization, uncovered two of the oldest Celtic coins ever found in Switzerland. Live Science reports that archaeologists believe the coins were offerings to the gods.
The coins were minted about 2,300 years ago, in the 3rd century BC. That places them among a very small group — just over 20 known examples of the oldest Celtic coins found in Switzerland.
One coin is a stater weighing 7.8 grams, while the other is a stater weighing 1.86 grams. A stater is an ancient Greek coin. By the late 4th century BC, Celts serving as mercenaries in continental Europe were often paid in Greek coins, and those coins inspired Celtic minting in the early 3rd century BC.
The coins are gold staters minted during the reign of Philip II of Macedon, the father of Alexander the Great. The obverse of both coins shows the profile of the Greek god Apollo; the reverse shows a two-horse chariot.
The two recently found coins differ slightly from the Greek originals. On the reverse of the smaller coin, beneath the horses, is a triple spiral — a triskelion, a symbol common in Celtic art.
The volunteer archaeologists say intuition led them to the site. In 2022–2023 they found 34 Celtic silver coins in the area and decided to investigate further.
Gifts to the Gods?
Researchers believe these two coins were sacrificed to the gods. Experts say Celtic gold coins weren’t used for everyday purchases; they were too valuable. Instead, people used them to pay wages, settle dowries, and as diplomatic gifts aimed at political gains.
The places where the coins were found were considered sacred by the Celts, so the coins were likely left there intentionally as offerings to the gods.
