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A French coin found near the Medieval fortress of Rusocastro baffles archaeologists

Photo: burgasmuseums.bg

A new priceless find has been discovered during excavations of the medieval Bulgarian town of Rusocastro. While exploring its massive fortress wall, archaeologists came across a silver coin (tornese) minted in the Kingdom of France. 

A small part of the coin is missing, making it impossible to determine which ruler minted it, the Regional History Museum in Burgas said. Archaeologists' guesses differ as to whether it is King Louis IX or King Louis X, but they are sure of one thing - that such coins are extremely rare in the Balkans.
Rusocastro fortress
The find provokes questions about the dynamics of various trade flows during the Middle Ages in the Eastern Balkans. Apparently, at that time people in the region also used French silver coins. Another explanation for the presence of this coin in Ruskocastro is that visitors or residents of the town had direct access to French silver currency.

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Radio Bulgaria History and religion    archaeology French coin Rusocastro

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