Cache of Punic coins found in sea near Sicily

PUNIC WATCH: Sunken Treasure Found in the Seas Of Sicily (Discovery News).

Lying at depth of about 68 feet, the coins most likely represent an episode of the Romans and Carthaginians struggle.

Amazingly, all 3,422 coins feature the same iconography.

On one side, they show Kore/Tanit, the ancient goddess of fertility, whom Carthaginians worshipped on the island around 550 BC.

On the other, the coins display the head of a horse, surrounded by symbols such as stars, letters and a caduceus. A staff often surmounted by two wings and entwined with two snakes, the caduceus was the symbol of Hermes, the messenger of the gods in Greek mythology.

Apparently they were deliberately hidden on the ocean floor, with a big stone anchor nearby as a landmark. Follow the link for some photos.