BUILDERS renovating a house in Belgium have discovered a stash of gold reportedly worth nine million euros sealed into the walls of its cellar, according to the BBC.

The construction workers stumbled across the hidden trove of gold bars and coins while drilling to lay new sewage pipes in the property in east Flanders earlier this week.

The discovery has sparked interest in who might get to keep the hoard, with both the builders and the local charity that owns the site having a chance of claiming it.

After launching an investigation, police warned people against attending the site to search for more treasure, saying the house was “turned upside down” and all the gold had been moved to a secure location.

The builders, including an 18-year-old working a summer job, unearthed the stash while working on the building’s foundations.

“Our first reaction was actually disbelief, amazement,” the student, named Kobe, told Belgian public broadcaster VRT.

“At first I thought they were one euro coins. But then we also saw a gold nugget lying there. That’s when we realised it was something bigger.”

Soon after, they alerted police to the discovery and explained that keeping it for themselves was not an option.

“There are so many coins and bars - it would be almost impossible,” the site manager Mario said.

“Besides, that would be theft.”

Kobe agreed: You simply can’t keep that hidden.”

The property currently belongs to a welfare support organisation in Dendermonde, a Flemish community of around 47,000 people.

Its director, Geert Hillaert, said his first reaction was “surprise and amazement”, adding that he hoped the treasure might eventually be used to support the charity’s work and meet the “enormous need we experience daily”. Police urged the public not to visit the active construction site looking for treasure.

Published in Dawn, August 15th, 2026