Construction workers renovating a building in Dendermonde, Belgium, made an unexpected discovery this week after uncovering a stash of gold bars and coins worth more than $10 million. The find occurred on Tuesday during work to lay a sewer pipe in the east Flemish town. A worker identified only as Kobe said they stumbled across the treasure while doing groundwork for the project.
The gold was found bricked into the cellar walls of a house owned by local charity CAW East-Flanders, according to thepeninsulaqatar.com. Police were alerted after workers discovered what they described as a large quantity of gold, according to a report from Mathrubhumi. Images shared by Belgian police showed around fifty gold bars and piles of coins.
The discovery has drawn attention from treasure hunters who want to visit the site. Police warned the public not to approach the fenced-off construction area. They posted on Facebook that it was pointless for people to try and access the location.
The police also changed their profile picture to a gold coin in response to the find. Ownership of the treasure is still unclear. It remains unknown whether anyone will get to keep the gold.
Police expressed hope that the treasure would end up in the right hands, The Straits Times reported. Under Belgian law, the rightful owner has five years to come forward and claim the hoard. A local prosecutor has opened an investigation into who might be entitled to it.
If no one claims the gold, civil law says that a hidden stash found on another person’s property should be split between the finder and the owner. This rule only applies if the treasure is not connected to any criminal activity.
The site remains closed as authorities decide how to handle the situation.
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