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EVER SINCE YOU were a child have you always dreamed about finding some buried treasure?
Paul Coleman was out with the Weekend Wanderers Detecting Club with his metal detector, when he discovered over 5,200 silver coins.
The amateur archaeologist’s find was unveiled at London’s British Museum today.
Silver coins
The discovery is one of the largest ever finds of Anglo-Saxon coins from the 10th and 11th centuries was made by Paul Coleman while out on an organised dig in central England.
The treasure, dating from the reigns of King Ethelred II (978-1016) and Canute (1016-1035), was buried in the village of Lenborough, Buckinghamshire.
The coins are unofficially estimated to be worth over €1.34 million.
Coleman said that he nearly did not make the 100 mile trip from his Southampton home to the dig site to avert the cost of filling up his car with fuel.
It was almost written on the cards.
It was a long way to go, we don’t normally travel that distance. I had that feeling that the day would end well — it’s pure fate!
Treasure find
He immediately knew that the find was a big one, explaining “the signal from the detector was so large and so deep that when I first uncovered the first coin, I knew there was more to it than just that coin.”
The coins were today unveiled at London’s British Museum.
The coins were found in good condition as they were covered in mud and were wrapped in a lead sheet.
Pippa Pearce, the curator in charge of cleaning the treasure, said:
It’s a very rare treasure, and (it’s) rare to find so many coins all together and in such good condition.
“One of the coins is so rare that it immediately took up exhibition in the money gallery.”
New house
Coleman will share the bounty with the landowner.
He said he hoped to buy a bigger house for entertaining his grandchildren.
The presentation of the treasure coincided with the release of the latest “Treasure Annual Report.”
It reported discoveries had increased significantly in recent years, with 990 in 2012, 993 in 2013 and 1,008 in 2014. There were only 201 finds in 1998.
The number of discoverers waiving their right to a reward also doubled in five years, allowing museums to acquire them cheaply, according to the report.
Additional reporting Christina Finn
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In Ireland, us peasents have to hand it over to the State.
If you’re smart you smuggle it out of the country lay low for few years sell it privately
In Britain you do as well, only they pay you for the effort. From my understanding they pay you the going market rate and museums in the area can bid to receive the treasure.
And if you’re REALLY smart you advertise your criminal lifestyle on a public forum. Good man! sideways winky face
And are not allowed to use metal detectors
Not true
Yes… That’s great! Sell our heritage and history for a few Euro! You’re what’s wrong with this country!
Your right……
I’ll cry into my pile of 500 euro notes
Interesting Charles that you were recently castigating those in Mountjoy while making the claim to be a ‘normal’ – what ever that means – person! On Saturday not only did this clown claim he has never broken a law in his life but also that everyone he knows have never broken a law either, yet here he is advising others to break the law. Maybe, before you climb down from your ivory tower, you’ll take a good hard look at your superior sense of self-worth. Anyone who claims to be normal is probably a right assho…
David – since when is someone else’s money “our” heritage? Do you think ownership transfers just because it is something old?
an english fella was in my land about two weeks ago and came across one of those exact coins. It was only one coin, he asked for permission, so we let him off. Sure he was out there all day looking for it.
The way I see it, was if he didnt go looking, it would never be found. He did the work, so Ive no problem with him keeping it. Id say its worth about a hundred quid and good luck to him with it.
Cowen if you misquote me I’ll be left with no choice but to twist your nipples.
Never said any of that bull plop :)
I’m going to let you in on a secret. …..
Charles Mcdonald is a pseudonym.
You may need to Google that word.
Your right to what?
“Charles Mcdonald
Sat 12:38 PM # 63 21
Well full body exam for anyone visiting. Probes and all the full go over.
As a normal person I don’t know anyone in prison. However if I knew someone who was they would be a horrible person to go there and I would never never visit.
Normal people, normal families don’t visit so those that do should expect cavities search”
http://www.thejournal.ie/drugs-prisons-gang-leaders-1925980-Feb2015/?utm_source=shortlink
I’m sure you mother and father would be glad to know they raised an absolute liar, albeit a very poor one. You’re right up there with Eithne Kenny. Can’t even lie right! Now, jog on and change avatars quick and give me another red thumb!
I’m glad you actually went to that trouble.
However you stated I said I never broke a law or never knew anyone who did.
Where does it say that there. Hey could have got speeding ticket does that put me in jail for breach of road traffic act??
Just be careful not to show yourself up as more of a muppet :) especially when you misquote and post evidence to prove it. Talking about mommy and daddy they could have educated you better :)
People in your ivory tower this is called Charlie power ;)
A big chunk of archaelogy is context, where its found, with what other objects its found. The alternative is a bunch of gold and silver hungry treasure hunters pillaging our historical sites for shiney metal objects and not giving a damn about the other ones. I have mixed feelings about the law, as I’d love to go investigating our past with a metal detector but I see the wisdom of the law at the same time
In this country most finds are probably melted down and lost forever due to us peasants having to hand it over to the state without any reward being given.
Nope, actually most treasures like this find their way into the storerooms of the National History Museum for protection and, in some cases, future display or sometimes they might find their way into museums around the rest of the country.
Not a hope I’d be handing over my treasure the skunks in the dail take enough already
Jim, probably because they are significant pieces of our shared national heritage and should be preserved for the enjoyment of all
Jim / Jason Bourne both comments very similar there , “in this country ” , ” in Ireland ” and both using the word peasants . very interesting ..
Aasif, if you fail to report a find like this in Ireland you’re breaking the law and possibly risking accidentally damaging a precious piece of Irish history. Turning finds of this magnitude over to the relevant authorities is absolutely critical to advancing our knowledge of our past.
It’s not right that finds like this aren’t paid the going market rate in Ireland but at the moment we have much more pressing issues.
Ummm…. your logic is a bit off here. There is no way of knowing how much stuff does NOT find its way into the national storerooms. We only know what does make it there.
As it stands, it is probably the case that since 1994, hordes have made their way into the hands of rich collectors abroad.
If you were to dig that trove up in Ireland using a metal detector , you would be committing a crime. As a metal detectorist for over 35 years with some great finds i find it hard to see why the government won’t bring in a treasure trove law here.
Surely Leslie we should be interested in Archaeology not treasure hunting. Metal detecting destroys archaeological remains.
I have loads of stuff in goof condition, I’ll be on to the Brits post haste.
He still Canute believe it.
Am I a bit naiive in thinking that artefacts found, should belong to the nation and be put on display? Money or rewards shouldn’t come into it.
Hmm, I think the reward is a nice incentive of handing any finds like this over to the state rather than selling them on the black market
Totally agree with you! People would happily sell our heritage to the highest bidder!
There’s a lot of land here, you have to give people some incentive, share three ways.
the museum is open to all for free therefore why is a random person who finds something entitled to be paid by the tax payer?
Well you learn something new everyday…. I never knew metal detector users needed a special permit, wow.
There were rumours of the generals ill gotten gains buried around the Phoenix park and bags of pre euro coinage buried under a part of the M50.
Nah mike they were M50 tokens…
I thought it was the proceeds of a robbery from an amusement arcade.
Your more than likely right though,one of his buddies said he used to hide stuff and forget where he left it.
Two abs don’t forget the Dublin mountains , he loved visiting them too
*and don’t*
Are they the original bitcoins
Leslie. Because every chancer in the country would be at it, thats why.
It dose not happen in England with it’s treasure trove law’s. I know, i have been through it.
Journal. So an article about the love Ulster parade coming back to Dublin and stop ignoring this story
Our law is so daft. Basically you have to leave stiff in the ground rather than look for it. Instead of just making a law that if you find anything you share it. Its so dumb. Schrodinger would love it. ” Well, we don’t know what to do, so lays do nothing. .. Welcome to Ireland”
Detecting destroys the archaeological record. It cannot be done with reducing what we learn about the past. Also the UK set up has resulted in significant amount of heritage ending in private hands legally. At least here that is illegal.
There is more to our archeological history than just the shiney bits of metal. And as well, the ‘story’ of the arifact doesn’t exist without context. You go grab a metal detector and go walking in a field and find a gold broach and hungrily dig it up.
So when was it made?
Who owned it? and why was it in that particular field?
Was there a dwelling on that site, if so was it one of rich person or a poor person? What sort of food did they eat?
Wow, that is a treasure worth finding. I wonder why it was buried there and who left it there?
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