Danish teen finds Viking coins with metal detector

A Danish teen has found hundreds of Viking-era items and coins in northern Denmark using a metal detector.

Sixteen-year-old Michael Stokbro Larsen found the rare Norse coins, which come from as far as Germany and England, in an open field.

Officials at the Danish National Museum, Denmark’s largest museum of cultural history, said the items were found at an archeological dig last year.

That dig produced hundreds of items, including 60 coins, emblazoned with a "rare cross motif attributed to Norse King Harald Bluetooth who is believed to have brought Christianity to Norway and Denmark," the Associated Press reported.

Much of northern England fell under Viking control starting in the late ninth century in an area called Danelaw, according to the British Museum. During that time, Viking rulers issued different coins in each area.

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This many Viking coins have not been found in over 70 years, according to the Danish Museum.