The Pietroasele Thesaurus

The thesaurus was discovered in 1837 by two masons who thought that the pieces had no real value, being made of brass. According to the declarations and the facts gathered in time, the thesaurus would have had 22 pieces that weighed a few pounds of gold. In the attempt to be sold and passed over the border the voluminous pieces of the thesaurus were brutally fragmented.

The first official mention about the discovery of the thesaurus was made on 13 August 1838 in an article published in the newspaper Romania. In 1839 from the thesaurus were left only 12 pieces. The thesaurus was presented at the World’s Fair in Paris in 1867 and it was considered the most valuable thesaurus in the world (the tomb of Tutankamon had not yet been discovered). In order to have a proper presentation, Paul Telge, the Habsburg Royal family jeweler, restored the thesaurus. He also made four copies of the thesaurus, one of them in the collection of the County Museum of Beau.

One year later, the thesaurus was displayed at "Sent Kensington Museum" of London and in 1872 at the International Exhibition from Wine. In 1875 the thesaurus was stolen from the exhibition hall of the Romanian Academy where it was on display. Than the necklace with the inscription “Gutaniocvihailag" was cut in four, two of the pieces went missing. Later it was recovered but had several restorations.

Now the thesaurus is on display in the Thesaurus hall at the National Museum of Romanian History form Bucharest.

It ahs only 12 pieces with a total weight of 19,820 kg in gold:

One large fibula in the shape of an eagle

One small fibula

Two middle sized fibula

One tray

One cup oenoche,

One patera

Two polygonal small baskets

Two columns (one of them with an inscription)

One necklace with hinge.