Unknown burglars have stolen a valuable gold treasure from the Celtic period from a museum in Manching, Upper Bavaria. The museum was broken into early Tuesday morning, a spokesman for the Bavarian State Criminal Police Office (LKA) in Munich told the AFP news agency. The showcase with the treasure was broken open and the gold “completely stolen”. The burglary was later noticed by employees of the museum. Several media had previously reported.
According to the Kelten-Römer Museum, the hoard of 450 coins is the largest Celtic gold find of the 20th century. It was uncovered in the summer of 1999 during excavations in the Manching area. It is the largest Celtic gold find that has appeared in the last century.
The LKA spokesman said that the classic gold value based on the daily rate still had to be determined. However, the collector’s value is several million euros. For Wednesday, the investigators announced more information.
The treasure has been exhibited in the museum in the district of Pfaffenhofen/Ilm since 2006. The so-called Oppidum Manching is considered to be an outstanding Celtic settlement, in which archaeologists continue to work to this day. The Bavarian State Office for the Preservation of Monuments counts the settlement among the most important archaeological monuments north of the Alps.
