A Man Who Inherited Rare Roman-Era Silver Ingots Found In His Great-Grandmother’s Backyard Allegedly Tried To Sell One On The Black Market, But Ukrainian Museum Officials Intervened

It is estimated that the treasure is worth 3.5 million Ukrainian hryvnia, which comes out to about $84,800. To date, only a small handful of other similar ingots have been found in Europe. There are around 90 existing Roman silver ingots today, with only 11 containing mint stamp impressions.

“It is excellent news that they ended up in a museum rather than on the black market for antiquities,” said Kyrylo Myzgin, an archaeologist and faculty member at the University of Warsaw. “Roman silver ingots with coin die imprints are incredibly rare and were virtually unknown outside the Roman Empire.”

According to Myzgin, who initially examined the ingots, it is likely that they made it to the region of what is now western Ukraine through interactions between the local population of Germanic tribes or Dacians (people in modern-day Romania) and the Roman Empire in the early fourth century. The nature of their interactions is unclear.

Currently, the ingots are on display in an exhibition of salvaged treasures at the museum.