Ancient Roman coins reveal emperor lost in time for 300 years

Known only from an assemblage of coins allegedly found in Transylvania in 1713, a new study reveals that Roman emperor Sponsian was real. The study of the coins reveals that emperor Sponsian was real and he ruled Roman Dacia, an isolated gold mining outpost. "They are very unlike regular Roman coins in style and manufacture, with various enigmatic features including bungled legends and historically mixed motifs, and have long been dismissed as poorly made forgeries," the paper said. Four gold coins analysed by researchers, including the Sponsian coin and other Roman coins previously dismissed as forgeries, are on display in The Hunterian at the University of Glasgow.