Metal-detecting mistake uncovers rare 900-year-old Magnus Barefoot coin in Norway

A Norwegian metal detectorist mistook a 900-year-old silver coin for a button, only for researchers to confirm it as a rare Magnus Barefoot-era artifact (1093–1103). Found near Utstein Monastery, the coin’s copper-backed side was turned into jewelry, and X-rays revealed a griffin paired with a cross-over-cross motif—one of only four known examples of this design. The find, one of about 100 coins from Barefoot’s reign, sheds new light on late Viking-Age minting and Barefoot’s high-silver standard before his death in 1103.