Karnak Hoard
The Karnak Hoard was discovered in 1901 in Karnak (Egypt). It contained some 1,200 aurei, dating from Hadrian to Elagabalus. Giovanni Dattari wrote to Francesco Gnecchi about the discovery of the coins in two terracotta jars: the first one containing about 1,000 pieces, the second one (found eight days later about 10 meters away) containing 180 coins. But there seems to be some confusion, as Robert Mowat – that same year – wrote that the coins were found in January 1902: in fact, the first coins to have appeared from this hoard were already being offered at auction in Paris, on 25 June 1901, and the rest of the hoard was dispersed privately over a number of years. Kurt Regling stated that a consortium in Cairo acquired most of the coins from the finder, which then offered them at very high prices to Bachofen von Echt in Vienna, to London buyers and to the Paris museum (after which a German dealer dealt with the majority of the coins – selling them to the Berlin and Vienna museums and to count Du Chastel amongst others). In a letter addressed to the Paris coin-cabinet on July 21st, 1903, the dealer Jacob Hirsch referred to 4 aurei from the hoard being sold for 5,000 Francs to Baroness Thérèse de Rothschild – who was buying on behalf of the museum. The Cabinet des Médailles later acquired other coins, supposedly from the same source
Biblio.: Hadrien J. Rambach, Provenance Glossary of Coins in the George W. LaBorde Collection (published over three auctions in NAC 91, 99 and 105)