Italian authorities are unveiling the “epochal” discovery of hundreds of Roman-era gold coins that were found during excavations to build a new apartment building in northern Italy.

Construction crews digging in the historic center of Como discovered the small stone jar containing about 300 coins last week.

Culture minister Alberto Bonisoli joined archaeologists and the carabinieri art squad to unveil the first 27 coins after they had been catalogued.

The ancient coins
About 300 coins were discovered in Como (AP)

He told a press conference that the find was “more than exceptional, it’s epochal – one of those discoveries that marks the course of history”.