German authorities arrested four suspects over a Celtic gold coin heist. The muggers intruded into the Celtic-Roman Museum in Manching. They stole 483 Celtic coins dated to around 100 B.C. and discovered in 1999 during an archaeological dig.
Celtic-Roman Museum, Keeper of Centuries-Old Archaeological Discoveries
Manching is one of the predominant Celtic cities in Europe. It is where you’ll find the Celtic-Roman Museum, also known as Kelten Römer Museum. This historic museum exhibits findings from more than a century of archaeological discoveries of the Celtic city on the Danube. Precious collections include several artefacts and tools and treasures from the Mediterranean district.
During the early Roman times, the Manching area developed a military camp. Countless objects recount the soldiers’ lives on the Roman Empire border. Moreover, there are two unique well-maintained military ships from Emperor Trajan’s reign.
Celts from the late 4th century BC to the middle of the first century AD minted gold coins. The images engraved on Celtic coins contain horsemen charging into battle, skulls and chariot wheels, giants trailing severed heads on a rope, thunderbolts and lightning, gods and goddesses, and the sun and moon.
Celtic Gold Coins Thieves, Busted
The Bavarian Criminal Police Office arrested four suspects on Tuesday for stealing Celtic gold coins from the Celtic-Roman Museum in November of last year. The stolen coins were one of the biggest Celtic gold discoveries of the 20th century. Investigators valued the commercial value of the gold coins following the theft to €1.6 million.
Bavaria’s state interior ministry, Joachim Herrmann said the arrest of the professional thieves was a success. The authorities conducted raids on northeastern Germany’s Schwerin region.
Following the pilferage, the museum reopened the current special exhibition in December. However, the permanent exhibition stayed closed until the end of April. During the reopening, Manching Mayor Herbert Nerb stated that the thievery hit them hard and still impacts them.
Gold Coin Heist Indicates Professional Work of Organized Criminals
On November 22, thieves broke into the Celtic-Roman Museum and stole 483 Celtic gold coins and a load of unworked gold. According to Bavaria’s State Criminal Police Office deputy head, Guido Limmer, the perpetrators cut the cables at a telecoms hub near the museum. This brought down the communication networks in the region.
The museum’s security system recorded the door opened at 1:26 am. The burglars left the museum with their loot at 1:35 am. In just 9 minutes, the bandits must have shattered a display cabinet and taken the treasure, without raising the alarm.
Image Source: Zde/WikimediaCommons
