Man Spots 'Relics' At The Mouth Of A Cave, Then Archeologists Look Closer And The Wild Reality Hits Them
In January 2021, Spain experienced unusually severe snowstorms — the worst in half a century, according to a government official. But despite the bad weather, in the Northern Spanish region of Asturias, a local man, Roberto García, spotted something bizarre smack dab in the wilderness that looked entirely out of place. A scattering of ancient coins sat strewn around on the ground at the mouth of a cave, prompting a slew of questions.
Scattered coins
Could the snowfall and this random scattering of coins be connected in some way? García could only speculate. But one thing he was sure of was that this was no pile of modern-day small change lying on the ground. It was clear enough that these coins were very old. Thinking fast, García knew what to do next.
Call the archaeologists
García contacted some archaeologists and tipped them off to the curiosity he’d just stumbled on. The mysterious scattering of coins — there were close to 100 of them — was at the mouth of La Cuesta cave. It’s close to the town of Berció, near the banks of the River Nalón, and some 230 miles north of Madrid.
An intriguing mystery
So García had done what any good citizen would: he’d informed the authorities about his inadvertent find. But he was still left with an intriguing mystery to consider. Why’d these ancient coins appear in the mouth of the cave at this precise time? And could there be a connection with the fact that Northern Spain had recently suffered from freezing blizzards, the worst for more than a generation?
Alfonso Fanjul
It was April before the architects were able to arrange a field trip to La Cuesta cave. The small group was led by Alfonso Fanjul and the researchers were soon able to identify the type of coins that were lying at the mouth of the cave. The items were from the days of ancient Rome, when the Roman Empire extended into what today is Spain and Portugal.
