The find took place at the Brouwershuis on Van Langenhovestraat in Sint-Gillis-Dendermonde, roughly 30 kilometers northwest of the Belgian capital, where the student and colleagues were installing drainage pipes during renovation work. Kobe told broadcaster VTM that the crew first spotted what looked like ordinary coins before uncovering a gold bar, leading them to realize the scale of the discovery. The hoard had been sealed inside a bag within a bricked-in cellar wall beneath a villa constructed in the late 19th century for brewery owner Theophilus Van Assche, whose business operated on the site from 1899 until 1970.
Social welfare organisation CAW Oost-Vlaanderen, which now owns the listed building and plans to convert it into offices and housing, received immediate notification from the workers along with local police. CAW representative Geert Hillaert told HLN that only the walls of the historic structure will remain after the extensive renovation. The gold was subsequently transferred to a secure facility in Brussels while officials examine its provenance, according to the Arab Times report on the incident.
East Flanders public prosecutor’s office representative Hanne Ollevier indicated that the case may trigger a civil dispute among construction contractors, the renovation body and any descendants of the Van Assche family. Belgian regulations grant potential owners at least five years to claim such treasure, a framework that aligns with practices in several European jurisdictions where finders may receive rewards only after unresolved claims expire. Former Dendermonde mayor Piet Buyse linked the cache to the brewery family’s accumulated wealth, which he suggested they had converted into gold for safekeeping.
Kobe stated that he and his team understood the necessity of surrendering the valuable find rather than keeping any portion of it. «If it had been a few coins, maybe not,» the student told VTM, while expressing hope that authorities might eventually provide some form of finder’s compensation. Comparable European discoveries, such as Roman-era gold coins unearthed by German construction teams, have similarly involved archaeological assessment and legal review before final allocation, according to regional heritage reports.
A Guardian account of the Belgian discovery confirmed the five-year claim window and quoted the same details on the workers’ decision to report the hoard immediately. The ongoing probe will assess whether the items were legitimately held by previous owners or connected to any illicit activity, with numbered bullion bars offering potential clues to their history. No determination on ownership or rewards has been announced as authorities continue cataloging the collection.
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