Over the course of five days—from June 29 to July 3, 2026—the Regional History Museum in Sofia hosted an intensive scientific and experimental workshop—the 2nd International Experimental Numismatic Workshop—which took place for the first time in Bulgaria. It brought together leading experts from the Swiss Inventory of Coin Finds (Switzerland), Corpus Nummorum at the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities (Germany), the University of Leicester (United Kingdom), and Bulgarian scholars from the National Archaeological Institute with Museum at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski,” and the Regional History Museum – Sofia.
The aim of the international workshop was to apply practical approaches to the numismatic study of finds discovered during archaeological excavations at the northern fortress of Serdica (35 Ekzarch Yosif Str., Sofia) between 2017 and 2020.
The workshop was conceived by archaeologist and numismatist Rachel Ackerman and organized with the assistance of the excavation’s scientific director, Polina Stoyanova. It was organized by the Faculty of History at Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski” in partnership with the Regional History Museum – Sofia.
In just five days, numismatists, archaeologists, and students managed to identify and digitize over 2,000 coins and coin-like objects. Teamwork proved that numbers don’t matter much when we work together toward a clear goal. The results achieved are significant not only for numismatics but also for understanding the history of our city.
Participants in the 2nd International Experimental Numismatic Workshop:
From Bulgaria:
Polina Stoyanova, Regional History Museum – Sofia
Marina Doichinova-Ilchev, Regional History Museum – Sofia
Lili Grozdanova, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
Nikolay Dimitrov, National Archaeological Institute with Museum – Bulgarian Academy of Sciences
Alexander Moskov, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
Yasen Durmishov, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
Yulian Sapundzhiev, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
From Switzerland:
Rahel Ackermann, Swiss Inventory of Coin Finds
Markus Peter, University of Bern
Debbie Schmid
Jonas von Falten, Swiss Inventory of Coin Finds
Pilar Sanchez, Swiss Inventory of Coin Finds
From Germany:
Ulrike Peter, Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Corpus Nummorum
Vladimir Stolba, Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Corpus Nummorum
Patrick Dörr, Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Corpus Nummorum
From the United Kingdom:
David Wigg-Wolf, Honorary Professor at the University of Leicester
