9 June 2010 | A team of archaeologists discovered seven gold coins from the thirteenth century in the northern Bulgarian city of Veliko Tarnovo, which constitute the largest gold find ever made in Bulgaria’s medieval capital.

The coins were unearthed by archaeology professors Nikolay Ovcharov and Hitko Vachev during the excavations of the Saint Peter and Saint Paul Church (in the above photograph) in Veliko Tarnovo, which served as the capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire (1185 -1422) and, as such, was its most important political, economic, cultural and religious centre.

The coins, discovered 40 centimetres under the ground at about 10 metres away from the church, make up the largest gold find ever made in Veliko Turnovo, as the two previous discoveries of gold consisted of three gold coins each.

The coins all feature an image of Virgin Mary on one side, and an image of Jesus Christ on the other. Although they date to the rule of Bulgarian Tsar Ivan Asen II (1218-1241) – the first Bulgarian ruler to mint gold coins, arcaheologists told media that the newly found coins did not originate in Bulgaria. Rather, they came from the mint of John III Doukas Vatatzes, the Emperor of Nicaea in (1221-1254).

As BalkanTravellers.com reported, during last year’s excavations of the site, the team led by Professor Ovcharov discovered the remains of a thirteenth-century monastery, some medieval coins and a 30-gram silver ring.

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