Gold worth nine million euros found in wall of old Belgian house

In the Dendermonde area of northern Belgium, construction workers renovating an old house and installing sewer pipes broke through a cellar wall and uncovered a hidden stash of treasure. An 18-year-old student named Kobe, part of the work crew, initially mistook the coins for ordinary one-euro pieces, but upon noticing a gold bar nearby, realized the find was far more significant.

The workers immediately alerted police. The crew's foreman explained that keeping the treasure would have been illegal, and that such a large quantity of coins and bars could not realistically have been hidden anyway. Photos released by local police show markings on the gold bars, though it is not yet known when they were made or who concealed them in the wall, or why.

The house's history and what comes next

According to Belgian media, the building has belonged to a brewery entrepreneur since the late 19th century before being acquired by the charity CAW Oost-Vlaanderen, which is currently renovating it to provide social assistance to residents of Dendermonde. The organization's director expressed satisfaction at the discovery and hope that proceeds from the treasure could eventually be used to help people in need.

The fate of the gold, however, remains undecided. Belgian media reports suggest the find could eventually be split equally between the construction workers and the charity that owns the building. Under Belgian law, a five-year waiting period must pass before any division, during which a legitimate owner could still come forward to claim it. Should the investigation determine the gold was obtained illegally, neither the workers nor the charity would be entitled to it.

Police have opened an investigation, moved the gold to a secure location, and asked curious onlookers to stay away from the house, noting it has already been thoroughly searched.