2,600 silver coins found in outskirts of Moscow may have been buried by a medieval plague victim

Archaeologists in Russia have discovered a medieval hoard of 2,600 silver coins near Moscow, possibly buried by a nobleman who perished during a plague outbreak. The coins were found in a ceramic jug buried in Kolomna, a city about 71 miles southeast of Moscow. Most of the coins are a type called denga, first minted in the late 14th century by the Grand Principality of Moscow.

The hoard includes rare coins minted in Kolomna under Grand Princes Vasily I and Vasily II, as well as 350 previously unknown varieties. The most interesting coin features a bird in flight and was produced during the final years of Vasily I's reign. The hoard's location and the date of the coins suggest it was buried by a wealthy individual who fell victim to a plague epidemic that swept through Russian principalities in the 1420s.