13.92 mm diameter, 1.224 g, 90% gold, reeded edge Obverse: ROMANIA, face value 10 LEI, year 2020, coat of arms of Romania, a fibula and a golden ring - late Roman gold artifacts discovered at Carsium (Carsium is the ancient name of the city of Hîrşova)	Reverse: golden jewelry discovered at Carsium - another golden ring, two pairs of earrings and a necklace - and inscription ISTORIA AURULUI – ORFEVRARIE ROMANA TARZIE • CARSIUM • meaning HISTORY OF GOLD - LATE ROMAN GOLDSMITHERY • CARSIUM • Issuing date: 2nd of March 2020 Mintage: 1000 coins

About Carsium and about the late Roman gold artifacts discovered at Carsium

The town was founded sometime in the 1st century AD on the right bank of Danube River. Over time, various Roman military units, or parts of military units (vexillationes or vexillations), were stationed here. In 1987, rescue archaeological research was carried out in Hîrşova, on areas that were to be part of the city's new industrial platform. The gold objects that are the subject of the coin presented on this page have been discovered on that occasion. The objects were found in some tombs in the necropolis of the city of Carsium, and were dated in the first part of the 4th century AD.

About the late Roman gold artifacts discovered at Carsium and represented on the coin

Two gold fibulae of crossbow type ("cu capete în formă de bulb de ceapă", "with onion-shaped heads" in Romanian, term translated from "Zwiebelknopffibeln" in German language) were found in Hîrşova and were classified as "bunuri culturale mobile" (mobile cultural objects) listed in the "Patrimoniul Cultural Naţional" (National Cultural Heritage). One weighs 120.88 g and has "onions" with a hexagonal cross-section, the other weighs 50.05 g, with "onions" with a circular section. This second fibula, smaller than the first - 80 mm long, 52 mm wide - is represented on the obverse of the coin. The gold of the piece has the fineness of 833‰ [1].

As a curiosity, the brooch on the coin appears on the website of the National Institute of Heritage (Institutul Naţional al Patrimoniului) as being classified in the legal category "Tezaur" ("Treasure") twice: once by order no. 2679 of June 11, 2003 of the Minister of Culture and Religious Affairs (Ministrul Culturii şi Cultelor, at that time, the minister was academician Răzvan Theodorescu), and the second time by order no. 2029 of January 22, 2008 of the minister (in 2008 the minister was Adrian Iorgulescu). It is clearly the same object, because the inventory number is the same.

On the obverse of the coin a ring is also depicted. The ring has a semi-precious stone - a sardonyx - on which a man holding a spear is depicted. The ring weighs 12.71 (or perhaps 12.68) g, is 28 mm in diameter and 26 mm high [2]. The stone is mounted in an oval case with a small notch on the side, also depicted and visible on the coin.

The reverse of the coin depicts a ring with a nicolo stone. Nicolo is a rare term that designates a semi-precious stone - an onyx - engraved in depth (intaglio) or in relief (cameo). This variety of stone has a thin bluish layer on the outside, covering a black background. On the stone of the ring from Carsium, a character was engraved that appears black on a blue background.

The ring weighs 15.24 g (or 15.26), has a diameter of 27 mm and a height of 28 mm. The stone is mounted in an oval case with fluted ornaments on the sides. This piece has also been classified in the legal category "Treasure" twice [3], [4], once as a "signet ring" and once as a "gemstone ring".

Below the ring two pairs of earrings are represented on the coin. The upper ones have a link and a pendant. One has the link with a diameter of 17 mm and a mass of 2.25 g, the other - 18 mm and 2.3 g respectively. The pendant is 17 mm [5], [6]. The earrings in the center of the coin have a wavy earring hook and a flower with six petals. Only four petals out of six have been preserved on one of the earrings. The diameter of the flower is 20 mm. The piece with 6 petals weighs 2.53 g, the other 2.08 g [7], [8].

The necklace is made of 37 polyhedral beads (a polyhedron is a solid with several flat faces that are polygons). The beads are connected by gold links. The necklace weighs 40.52 g of 833‰ gold. When unfolded, the object is 445 mm long [9].

All the pieces described above belong to the inventory of the National Museum of History of Romania in Bucharest. For all the pieces, the records declare gold with the same grade (of 833‰), which seems hard to believe.

References

1. Oberländer-Târnoveanu E., Fibulă cu butoni în formă de ceapă. Institutul Naţional al Patrimoniului. Direcţia Patrimoniului Digital. Bunuri culturale mobile clasate în Patrimoniul Cultural Naţional, accesat septembrie 2025.

2. Arbunescu A., Inel cu gemă. Institutul Naţional al Patrimoniului. Direcţia Patrimoniului Digital. Bunuri culturale mobile clasate în Patrimoniul Cultural Naţional, accesat septembrie 2025.

3. Arbunescu A., Inel cu gemă. Institutul Naţional al Patrimoniului. Direcţia Patrimoniului Digital. Bunuri culturale mobile clasate în Patrimoniul Cultural Naţional, accesat septembrie 2025.

4. Oberländer-Târnoveanu E., Inel sigilar. Institutul Naţional al Patrimoniului. Direcţia Patrimoniului Digital. Bunuri culturale mobile clasate în Patrimoniul Cultural Naţional, accesat septembrie 2025.

5. Arbunescu A., Cercel din aur. Institutul Naţional al Patrimoniului. Direcţia Patrimoniului Digital. Bunuri culturale mobile clasate în Patrimoniul Cultural Naţional, accesat septembrie 2025.

6. Arbunescu A., Cercel din aur. Institutul Naţional al Patrimoniului. Direcţia Patrimoniului Digital. Bunuri culturale mobile clasate în Patrimoniul Cultural Naţional, accesat septembrie 2025.

7. Arbunescu A., Cercel din aur. Institutul Naţional al Patrimoniului. Direcţia Patrimoniului Digital. Bunuri culturale mobile clasate în Patrimoniul Cultural Naţional, accesat septembrie 2025.

8. Arbunescu A., Cercel din aur. Institutul Naţional al Patrimoniului. Direcţia Patrimoniului Digital. Bunuri culturale mobile clasate în Patrimoniul Cultural Naţional, accesat septembrie 2025.

9. Arbunescu A., Colier din mărgele. 37 de mărgele poliedrice. Institutul Naţional al Patrimoniului. Direcţia Patrimoniului Digital. Bunuri culturale mobile clasate în Patrimoniul Cultural Naţional, accesat septembrie 2025.

The History of gold series comprises:
- a set of four pieces of 500 old lei featuring the golden cache of Pietroasa (2001),
- the following 100 old lei coins with

- the Dacian helmet of Poiana-Coţofeneşti (1999, 2002 and 2003),

- the eagle from Apahida (2003),

- a Cantacuzinian engolpion (2004),
- the following 10 new lei with

- the Perşinari Hoard (2005),

- the Cucuteni-Băiceni hoard (2006),

- the rhyton of Poroina (2007),

- the Hinova hoard (2008),

- the Someşeni hoard (2010),

- the buckle of Curtea de Argeş (2011),

- the cross from Dinogetia (2011),

- the patera from Pietroasa Hoard (2012),

- the Four Gospels of Hurezi Monastery (2013),

- two ancient gold coins struck at Histria (2014),

- the crown of queen Marie (2015),

- the mace of king Ferdinand (2016),

- the crown of queen Elisabeth (2017),

- 10 ducats 1600 with Michael the Brave (2018),

- the 50 lei with year 1922 coin (2019),

- some late Roman gold artifacts discovered at Carsium (2020),

- the polygonal vessels from the Pietroasa hoard (2022),

- the princely diadem of Buneşti-Avereşti (2023),

- the Apahida hoard (2024).