The valuable collection belonged to Paul Nacre, a resident of Castillonnès (pictured). According to coin expert Thierry Parsy, “Narce, who lived a modest life and didn’t see a lot of the world, spent all of his money on his collection.”

The reclusive Nacre died in a nursing home at the age of 89 last August. He had no direct heirs. The notary in charge of his estate was made aware of his hobby by villagers and set out to find the collection. An extensive search of Nacre’s house turned up nothing, and the notary was ready to call it a day before peering behind a picture on a wall in a storage room. There he found a chest containing the gold coins, which Nacre had meticulously catalogued over the course of his lifetime.

10 times gold was found in everyday places