The treasure of king Childeric I (died 481 CE), found in his tomb in Belgium. The treasure was stolen in 1831 and almost all of it was melted down, but a few pieces, such as sword ornaments, a gold patera, and 2 bees. In the bottom picture are modern replicas of some of the lost treasure [2185×4172]

> Childeric’s tomb was discovered in 1653[12] not far from the 12th-century church of Saint-Brice in Tournai, now in Belgium.[13] Numerous precious objects were found, including jewels of gold and garnet cloisonné, gold coins, a gold bull’s head, and a ring with the king’s name inscribed. Some 300 golden winged insects (usually viewed as bees or cicadas) were also found which had been placed on the king’s cloak.[12] Archduke Leopold William, governor of the Southern Netherlands (today’s Belgium), had the find published in Latin. The treasure went first to the Habsburgs in Vienna, then as a gift to King Louis XIV of France, who was not impressed with the treasure and stored it in the royal library, which became the Bibliothèque Nationale de France during the Revolution.

> On the night of November 5–6, 1831, the treasure of Childeric was among 80 kg of treasure stolen from the Library and melted down for the gold. A few pieces were retrieved from where they had been hidden in the Seine, including two of the bees. The record of the treasure, however, now exists only in the fine engravings made at the time of its discovery and in some reproductions made for the Habsburgs.

[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Childeric_I](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Childeric_I)