A treasure trove of coins discovered on the site of Mohenjo-Daro, one of the oldest cities in the world

It was in the Larkana district, in the southeast of Pakistan, that the team of archaeologists led by Syed Shakir Shah, director of the archeology department at the Mohenjo-Daro site, made an unexpected discovery. At the beginning of November, a wall collapsed. The rubble then revealed an aggregate of thousands of copper coins previously contained in a pot.

Mohenjo-Daro is one of the first cities built in the world. Built 5000 years ago, it is the largest colony of the ancient Harappan civilization which dates back to the Bronze Age. But its sustainability is threatened. Experts have sounded the alarm: if radical measures are not taken, the site, mainly built with terracotta bricks above groundwater rich in salt, will crumble and eventually collapse.

The most spectacular structure at the site is the domed shrine which resembles a Buddhist stupa, a reliquary monument and traditional offering holder. It was in this structure that Syed Shakir Shah's team discovered, by a fortunate combination of circumstances, this hoard of copper money turned green due to corrosion weighing approximately 5.5 kilograms.

Sheikh Javed Ali Sindhi was part of the research team. Questioned by LiveScience, he supposes that this aggregate would be composed of 1000 to 1500 individual parts. A first visual analysis of the motif engraved on the shields seems to show a standing character. According to researchers, it is a representation of a king Kouchan (1st century AD) whose empire was at the center of relations between the East and the West for several centuries.

The reverse of some coins sometimes depicts the Hindu god Shiva and other symbols: Sheikh Javed Ali Sindhi reminds LiveScience that Buddhism has its origins in Hindu beliefs. The Kushan actively participated in the expansion of Buddhism in the Indus Valley, which is why the stupa was built on the ruins of Mohenjo-Daro.

This discovery in Pakistan is particularly important since it is the first of its kind since 1931. British archaeologist Ernest J. H. Mackay then made a similar find there by unearthing a treasure of more than 1000 copper coins. The figurative elements engraved on these shields are very similar to those that can be seen on the loot discovered in 2023. We can see a standing silhouette on one side, and on the other the figure of Shiva.

But these pieces have not finished revealing all their secrets. After the fall of the wall, some detached from the loot: they were taken to be carefully cleaned and examined in a specialized laboratory.