Vietnamese mud crab exportVietnam crab exportersoftshell crab exporter
Find us on Google 📌 View from the pews Start the day smarter ☀️ Get the USA TODAY app
WORLD

Largest Viking Age coin hoard ever found discovered in Norway

April 30, 2026, 11:48 a.m. ET
The largest Viking Age coin hoard in Norwegian history has been found in a field near Rena in Østerdalen. A total of 2,970 silver coins have been discovered so far, with the search is still ongoing. The largest coin hoard in Norwegian history consists mainly of English (Anglo-Saxon) and German coins, in addition to some Danish and Norwegian ones. Among them are coins minted under Cnut the Great, Æthelred II, Otto III, and Harald Hardrada.
The largest Viking Age coin hoard in Norwegian history has been found in a field near Rena in Østerdalen. A total of 2,970 silver coins have been discovered so far, with the search is still ongoing.

The largest coin hoard in Norwegian history consists mainly of English (Anglo-Saxon) and German coins, in addition to some Danish and Norwegian ones. Among them are coins minted under Cnut the Great, Æthelred II, Otto III, and Harald Hardrada.
Innlandet County Authority
Archaeologists from the Innlandet County Authority and detectorists have collaborated on the find and have been in close dialogue with the Museum of Cultural History and the Directorate for Cultural Heritage.
Archaeologists from the Innlandet County Authority and detectorists have collaborated on the find and have been in close dialogue with the Museum of Cultural History and the Directorate for Cultural Heritage.
Innlandet County Authority
Two of the silver coins from the hoard. We see a king’s head in profile. The coins are incredibly well preserved despite their time in the field. This may be because there are almost no stones in the soil at the findspot.
Two of the silver coins from the hoard. We see a king’s head in profile. The coins are incredibly well preserved despite their time in the field. This may be because there are almost no stones in the soil at the findspot.
Anne Engesveen,Innlandet County
A German coin from the Mørstad hoard. Typical of these coins is a schematic depiction of a temple on one side of the coin.
A German coin from the Mørstad hoard. Typical of these coins is a schematic depiction of a temple on one side of the coin.
May-Tove Smiseth,Innlandet County
A coin from the coin hoard from Mørstad near Rena, showing a king in profile. In the inscription one can read the king’s name: EDELRED.
A coin from the coin hoard from Mørstad near Rena, showing a king in profile. In the inscription one can read the king’s name: EDELRED.
May-Tove Smiseth,Innlandet County
A coin with traces of suspension, showing that it has been used as jewellery. The coin is part of the coin hoard from Mørstad near Rena.
A coin with traces of suspension, showing that it has been used as jewellery. The coin is part of the coin hoard from Mørstad near Rena.
May-Tove Smiseth,Innlandet Municipality
Rune Sætre, one of the two detectorists who found the hoard, checks a signal at the findspot.
Rune Sætre, one of the two detectorists who found the hoard, checks a signal at the findspot.
Anne Engesveen,Innlandet County
A cross on the reverse of one of the coins from the Mørstad coin hoard in Åmot municipality.
A cross on the reverse of one of the coins from the Mørstad coin hoard in Åmot municipality.
May-Tove Smiseth,Innlandet County
Fragment of a silver brooch, so-called “hacksilver”, from the Mørstad hoard. In the Viking Age, the weight of the silver was what mattered, and people could also pay with cut silver pieces.
Fragment of a silver brooch, so-called “hacksilver”, from the Mørstad hoard. In the Viking Age, the weight of the silver was what mattered, and people could also pay with cut silver pieces.
Innlandet County
Vegard Sørlie (on the left) and Rune Sætre, the two detectorists who found Norway’s largest coin hoard from the Viking Age.
Vegard Sørlie (on the left) and Rune Sætre, the two detectorists who found Norway’s largest coin hoard from the Viking Age.
Anne Engesveen,Innlandet County Authority
The coins are thoroughly documented and packed before being sent for further analysis.
The coins are thoroughly documented and packed before being sent for further analysis.
Innlandet County Authority
Featured Weekly Ad