A pair of hobbying detectorists have uncovered the largest hoard of Viking Age coins in Norwegian history—3,250 silver coins, a number set to rise as archaeologists continue to comb through a field in Østerdalen, east-central Norway. On April 10, Rune Sætre and Vegard Sørlie discovered 19 silver coins in a field previously untried by metal detectorists. They followed municipal protocol, promptly calling in archaeologists from Innlandet county and together they proceeded to work the site. To everyone’s surprise, the hoard continued to grow by the day and within weeks they had passed the 2,000 mark. The previous record was a hoard of more than 1,800 coins that was found on the southwestern coast of Norway in the mid-1800s. Collection of six English and German coins found close together: Photo: Innlandet County Council. The coins, which date from the 980s to the 1040s, largely capture a period of time in Norway before Harald Hardråde established a national mint. Most of the coinage is foreign.…