Terrace Dig Unearths Denmark’s Largest Viking-Age Silver Hoard

A shovel meant to prepare a terrace in a private garden in Rebild struck what archaeologists describe as Denmark’s largest Viking-Age silver hoard.

The discovery, made in June shortly before the summer holidays, weighs 18.5 kilograms, almost three times the size of the country’s previous largest silver hoard. Nordjyske Museer said the treasure was placed in a clay vessel during the 900s and contains around 700 objects and fragments.

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Unique and spectacular.

The collection includes silver ingots, bracelets, 47 complete coins and coin fragments, a small Thor’s hammer and other silver items. About 320 objects, weighing 6.4 kilograms, remained inside the original vessel. The rest lay in the surrounding soil.

Torben Sarauw, cultural heritage director and archaeologist at Nordjyske Museer, called the discovery “unique and spectacular.” He compared it to finding a Viking-Age safe and said its importance lay not only in its size, but also in what it shows about silver as wealth and a means of payment.

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This is a find of great importance for our understanding of the Viking Age in Denmark.

Arabic and English coins give the find a wider reach. Sarauw said they indicate connections with the Islamic world to the east and England to the west. The silver was buried in Rebild, he said, but the coins point to a much larger network.

The hoard will go to the National Museum for further examination. Nordjyske Museer is working toward a permanent display at the Viking Museum Fyrkat, alongside six gold arm rings from the Rold hoard found in northern Jutland in April. Those rings rank as Denmark’s third-largest Viking-Age gold find.

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The silver was hidden in Rebild, but it points to a much larger world.