Archaeologists discovered a rare treasure in an ancient Pagan temple outside of Lillehammer, Norway.
A team of archaeologists uncovered at least 35 gold pieces dated back to around 550 A.D. (roughly 1,500 years ago) hidden beneath a Pagan house of worship outside the town of Lillehammer, according to local news outlet Dagsavisen. The small pieces are as thin as aluminum foil and adorned with engravings of men and women wearing fancy outfits.
The pieces are as small as a fingernail and so detailed, it’s hard to imagine how our ancestors managed to make them so tiny. Some of the pieces show couples facing each other, whereas others depict them in some type of embrace, as seen in images shared on Facebook.
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It’s believed the pieces date back to the Merovingian dynasty.
“Despite the fact that the gold nuggets are so small, the motifs have a striking richness of detail,” University of Oslo archaeologist Nicolai Eckhoff, who was involved in the discovery, wrote on Facebook. (RELATED: Scientists Make Shocking Discovery Under Antarctica’s Ice)
“Usually the woman is dressed in a side dress, sometimes with a tow and a cape, and the man has a shorter skirt so that the feet are visible. He can also wear a cape, and both can wear jewelry, different hairstyles and hold different things like drinking cups, wands or rings in the hands or have hands to point to different gestures. The goldfinches are actually so detailed and varied that they are the source of studies of the time’s costume and iconographic studies,” he continued.
It’s an incredible discovery, since these types of treasures are rarely found within Norway, Newsweek noted. As usual, the archaeologists assumed the pieces were related to myth or ritual, instead of possibly just being really fashionable for the period.