Who doesn't dream of finding treasure??? It may be small, it may be inexpensive, but it is a cherished and so desired treasure. All Soviet boys grew up watching films like “Treasure Island”, “Dirk” or “The Adventures of Italians in Russia”. And how many family legends can you hear from every second friend or relative about how a grandfather’s kulak or a noblewoman’s grandmother buried gold and diamonds somewhere. At the same time, there is a real calculation by domestic archaeologists and historians that Russia has the highest treasure ratio in Europe. This was facilitated by a number of historical events.
And so, in May 2016, three residents of the Moscow region were lucky enough to find a treasure. It happened somewhere in the Starozhilovsky district of the Ryazan region. And already in December 2020, the Starozhilovsky District Court of the Ryazan Region decided to find two citizens (full name 2 and full name 3) guilty of committing a crime under paragraphs “a, c” of part 3 of article 243.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and sentenced them to a fine of 250 tons .R. to each. The treasure, 228 silver coins and their fragments, seized during the investigation, should be transferred to the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation.
Photo of a treasure of Kufic dirhams from open access on the Internet. Has nothing to do with the criminal case described in the note
So, what happened to the lucky treasure hunters between 2016 and 2020??? Let's figure it out.
Two residents of the Moscow region and probably the minor son of one of them were fond of instrumental search. This is a search for coins and other metal objects using a metal detector. In the materials of the court case, all personal data is hidden, therefore, I will call them, as in the court ruling, Full Name 2 and Full Name 3. Both citizens have a higher education, one works as a realtor, the second is an individual entrepreneur and earns money as a photographer.
In May 2016, citizen treasure hunters found a treasure of Kufic dirhams in a plowed field somewhere in the Starozhilovsky district. The treasure consisted of both whole coins and cut fragments – kunas and ryazans.
Historical background: Kufic dirham (dirham) is an Arab silver coin weighing approximately 4 grams. Dirhams were minted from the 7th to the 10th centuries AD. This coin was the main means of monetary exchange along the entire Silk Road, from China to Spain. Dirhams came to the territory of modern Russia due to the development of trade relations between the Varangians and Persians. The largest number of treasures found on the territory of the Russian Federation, which include Kufic dirhams, are found in the territory of the middle Poochye. The largest number of treasures of Kufic dirhams in Europe was found on the island of Gotland. The minting of Kufic dirhams ceased in the 10th century, due to the depletion of silver mines in Persia. A dirham cut in half in Rus' was called kuna, and ¼ of the dirham was called cut.
From the materials of the court ruling it is clear that the treasure was plowed up and found by treasure hunters in an area of 15×15 meters. It is unknown how long it took the treasure hunters to extract all the coins, but they filmed most of the process on video and took several dozen photographs, so to speak, at the scene of the event.
Subsequently, on the page of the YouTube video hosting channel Full Name 4, a video was posted with the title “FOUND A REAL TREASURE!” 700 SILVER COINS KUFIC DIRHAMS!” (transcription saved) Full name 3 reposted this video on his own page on VK, and photographs of coins from the treasure were also posted on Instagram.
Below is a quote from the case with a description of the comments under the photos on Instagram
In the correspondence, a user with the name “dinia_dark” indicates that the depicted coins are dirhams and were found in the Ryazan region, the depicted coins date back to the period of the Arab Caliphate, were minted in Iran and distributed throughout the world (there is an indication “dollar of those times”), minted in 8 -9th century. The correspondence calls the coins “Ryazan Kufiks”, and indicates that the coins are “stale” and are April snowdrops. During the correspondence, the above user complains that when there is a “cop,” “the weather ruins everything.” It is further stated that the discovered coins are approximately “half a kilo.” In the correspondence, the user reports that he has a MinelabXterra 705 metal detector. Then, in the correspondence, the above user indicates that “Ryazanochka is still a countrywoman, she only gives on the way,” and the coins found are 97-98 percent pure silver. Further, the user reports that there is good land in the Ryazan region, and they did not return without silver and copper (which is in good condition).
The video itself regarding this criminal case was deleted long ago. However, you can see roughly what it might look like in the YouTube feed.
Videos on YouTube and photographs on Instagram attracted the attention of FSB operatives. As a result of operational-search activities, the residential addresses of Full Name 2 and Full Name 3 were established. Searches were carried out at the place of residence of each of the defendants in the case, and the citizens themselves were brought in for questioning. As a result, all participants in this case cooperated with the investigation and confessed. During the investigation, the accused and investigators went to the site where the treasure was found and showed where and how exactly the excavations were carried out.
In order to confirm the corpus delicti, and this, according to Part 3 of Article 243.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, is damage or destruction of a cultural layer , it was necessary to identify an archaeological site on this land plot. Exactly how the procedure for identifying an archaeological object was carried out is not indicated in the case materials, but it is known that by order of the State Inspectorate for the Protection of Cultural Heritage Objects of the Ryazan Region dated November 7, 2018 No. 166. There is an identified archaeological heritage site on the land plot.
What's the point? The fact is that crimes in the field of archeology, according to current legislation, have retroactive effect. That is, if an archaeological site was destroyed or damaged, and was discovered only after the fact of damage or destruction, then any excavation work on the territory of the identified site before its discovery may be considered a criminal offense.
And, one more point of subtlety of our legislation. An identified archaeological site can be considered any piece of land where there are traces of human activity over 100 years old. Either on the maps of a hundred years ago there were roads or buildings and structures in this area. According to the law, an object of archaeological heritage can remain in an identified state for an unlimited time. Therefore, there is no need to confirm the presence of an archaeological site on a land plot. An archaeological site that has been identified but not yet registered has all the legislative protection properties of a registered cultural heritage site.
That is why the activities of treasure hunters were recognized by the court as carrying out illegal archaeological work at an archaeological site for the purpose of searching for and seizing archaeological objects.
The maximum punishment under Part 3 of Article 243.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for actions as part of an organized group is up to 6 years of criminal imprisonment. When considering the case, the court took into account all mitigating circumstances, as well as the cooperation of the defendants with the investigation, and imposed a penalty in the form of a fine, payable in installments for 5 years.
The seized Kufic dirhams were turned into state property, with their further transfer to the museum. Metal detectors and other items seized during the search (8,736 coins (including tokens) of various years of issue) not related to this case were returned to Full Name 3.
This is such a sad story, which can be summed up with lines from Vladimir Vysotsky’s song “Even though the giraffe was wrong, but the giraffe is not guilty…”
And we wrote about why in the Russian Federation it is impossible, within the framework of the current legislation, to hand over the found treasure in one of the previous notes. If interested, follow the link HERE.
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