Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Homeowner Building Pool Near Lyon Unearths €700,000 Gold Cache and Keeps It

Investigators traced the metal to legal remelting by a Lyon-area firm 15 to 20 years ago, leaving its burial unexplained.

Overview

  • The municipality of Neuville-sur-Saône confirmed in November that a resident uncovered the stash in May while excavating for a backyard pool.
  • Experts from the regional cultural authority (DRAC) determined the find was not archaeological, which allowed the discoverer to retain it under French law.
  • The hoard comprised five gold ingots and numerous coins wrapped in plastic, with a preliminary valuation of about €700,000.
  • Gendarmerie investigators report the gold was legally acquired and melted by a company in the Lyon region 15–20 years ago, and no claimants have emerged.
  • The previous landowner is deceased and the finder has stayed anonymous, leaving the reasons for the cache’s burial unresolved.