The Durham Constabulary, the police force responsible for the surrounding county, first went public with the mystery in November in a last-ditch effort to find the source of the money. Inquiries to residents, village organizations, the post office and local bank had yielded nothing, nor had tests for fingerprints.

“These bundles are always left in plain sight such as on pavements and discovered by random members of the public who have handed them in,” John Forster, detective constable of the Durham Constabulary said in a statement released in November, after the fourth bundle that year was handed to the police. He appealed to the public to come forward with any relevant information.

The news of the cash drops spread quickly, drawing international attention and heated speculation about who, or what, might be behind them. The village residents were also praised for their honesty, as they consistently turned the cash over to the police. When no one came to claim it, the finders received the money themselves.

At least one element of the mystery came to an end on Monday, when the Durham Constabulary said that two people had come forward as the village’s philanthropists.

They both asked to remain anonymous, and the police referred to them as only “the good Samaritans.” Mr. Forster said in a phone interview on Tuesday that the pair — who, he said, knew each other but appear to be unrelated — did not choose Blackhall Colliery “at random.”