Metal detector enthusiast unearths huge hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold

[Bangyai]

The largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold ever found has been unearthed on farmland in Staffordshire by a metal detector enthusiast, archaeologists revealed today.
Terry Herbert, 55, from Burntwood, came across the huge hoard as he searched a field near his home. The exact location of the discovery has not been disclosed but it is understood to be near the Lichfield border in South Staffordshire.
Experts said the collection of more than 1,500 pieces, including helmets, sword pommels and sword hilts possibly looted on the field of battle 1,400 years by a victorious warlord, is unparalleled in size and may have belonged to Saxon royalty.
The hoard contains around 5kg of gold and 2.5kg of silver, far bigger than previous finds such as the Sutton Hoo burial site.

Full article :

Metal detector enthusiast unearths huge hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold - Times Online

A facinating find for historians of British history.

[Phoenix]

I once considered bringing a metal detector to Thailand and having a stroll around Ayudhaya or other likely spots. Not for the money just out of curiosity. Probably end up lynched to the nearest lampost for stealing national treasures.

[Begbie]

Sukothai would be a better bet

[Marmite the Dog]

Probably end up lynched to the nearest lampost for stealing national treasures.

Especially in Ayutthaya. That's the job of the Thai Fine Arts Dept or the police there.

[Cenovis]

Dont forget to apply for a work permit then

[jandajoy]

Dont forget to apply for a work permit then

No worries, give it to the misses.

I might buy a dozen or so and hire some local folk to go a searching.

FMD a nice little haul for the Burntwood boy.

I wonder how much he'll get.

[Rural Surin]

Sukothai would be a better bet

Luang Prabang or Angkor might present a much more valuable find.

[zubber]

the police would be on you fast ,woudlnt try it.
saw some guys on the beach at pattaya some years back and they had only a few baht coins. sanam luang in BKK is prolly loaded with gold chains and items lost over the years but once again the police would hassle you as they would want their cut .

[mobs00]

I know a guy who is really into it and he says using a metal detector in Thailand is actually illegal.

[Rural Surin]

Historical treasures need to be secured, preserved and archived in museums. But the 'finder' should be dutifully compensated.

[lysander]

The Staffordshire find has been declared 'treasure trove' which means that the finder and the landowner will be recompensed by the government to the value of the find.

[Bangyai]

I know a guy who is really into it and he says using a metal detector in Thailand is actually illegal.

Typical. It hasn't been dropped in our lap so you mustn't look for it and steal our somnambulant thunder. Wankers.

I find this sort of discovery really interesting but I knew it would nose dive here. I should have ' sexed it up ' a bit:

' Huge hoard of Anglo Saxon gold found in Pattaya girls twat.' yea..... that would do it. Is it too late to edit I wonder /

[buriramboy]

I used to have a mate who used to make a small fortune with his metal detector out in Spain, there was some dip in the seabed or something where everything got swept into, he'd just go along in the evening and find countless rings, necklaces, bracelets etc. on a daily basis.

[nikster]

Every metal detector enthusiast's wet dream.... awesome story. I sure hope he gets fair value for the find. It would be in the state's best interest, really, considering that giving him any less would just discourage people from disclosing future finds.

[Bangyai]

More here from the Telegraph with video commentry :

Anglo-Saxon gold: largest ever hoard officially declared treasure - Telegraph

[Bangyai]

And the Guardian....with video :

Largest ever hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold found in Staffordshire | UK news | guardian.co.uk

Talking to the finder of the hoard ..... a rich man now.

[panama hat]

may have belonged to Saxon royalty.

It should be returned to Germany . . . to Saxony . . . bloody Anglo-Saxon swine!

[panama hat]

Whoooooooooooooooo . . . four posts with one click of the mouse . . . I deserve the loot

[PlanK]

I'm sure I had a great, great, great, great, great (insert more greats here) ancestor type person who fell victim to this gold hoarder and had that shiny bit of gold in the picture taken from him unjustly.

Where do I make my claim?

[panama hat]

^ At the nearest Thai police station . . . you will be treated courteously and with respect. Your details and your grievance will be duly recorded in a book, your claims will be handled with the utmost of professionalism.

[forreachingme]

I've got a Syrian friend who is sure of finding lots of stuff around his home town if he gets such equipment.

but he is sure as well to land in jail if they see him...

Around 1998 they were working on a road crossing a very poor village upcountry in Lebanon, they discovered lots of gold under the road while digging, huge treasure from the Romans i believe it was...

To find archeologic spots today, google earth can be a fantastic tool for a start...

[English Noodles]

So how much are they giving the bloke that found it and how much does the land owner get? He might have been better off just melting it down.

[crippen]

They get 50% each,finder and land-owner of the value of the find,as decided by an independent valuer,usually a museum or court. This is worth a serious lot of dosh.Some say there is upwards of 5 kgs of gold.

[Happyman]

The value is not just calculated on the weight of the artifacts.
As many have mounted stones and semi-precious bits and some of the items are not pure gold or silver, but alloys of both, that were made to make the metal useable for the purpose (ie the cheek pieces from the helmet parts that were found were an alloy that enabled the artwork to be embossed without weakening the base metal )
The value is actually based upon the intrinsic value of the items to collectors and museums, as historical items as well as the actual value of the metal .

PS My mum was one of a team that valued 'Treasure Trove' in the 70's

[crippen]

Anglo-Saxon hoard: museums face race to raise cash
The museums hoping to buy the Anglo-Saxon 'Staffordshire hoard' face a race against time to raise the funds.

By Stephen Adams, Arts Correspondent
Published: 2:36PM BST 25 Sep 2009

Museums hoping to buy the Anglo-Saxon 'Staffordshire hoard' should raise the money within four months of valuation being agreed Photo: STAFFORDSHIRE HOARD
They have just four months to come up with the money from the date valuation is agreed, under the Treasure Act Code of Conduct.
Independent dealers are likely to value the hoard, thought to contain some 1,500 gold and silver items dating from about 700AD, at several million pounds.

But Birmingham Museum, the Potteries Museum in Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire County Council, face the toughest fund-raising landscape in years.
Dr Roger Bland, head of the Portable Antiquities and Treasure at the British Museum, who wrote the Treasure Act guidelines, said of the deadline: "It should be within four months of the museums being invoiced."
"It is a guideline," he stressed, but added: "We are certainly encouraging Birmingham and Stoke-on-Trent to do all they can and not hang around."
He hoped the independent Treasure Valuation Committee would agree a figure in November.
The museums are likely to approach first the Government-funded National Heritage Memorial Fund (NHMF) and the Art Fund, a charity.
However, earlier this year both committed large sums to help secure the Titian painting, Diana and Actaeon, for £50 million. The NHMF financed much of its £10 million donation from future years' budgets.
Andrew Macdonald, deputy director of the Art Fund, said it was "imperative" the money was found.
But he warned: "It does come after some major [donation] projects."
Funding was "falling away" from some quarters due to the recession, he noted.
"We have extremely large amounts of money being asked for. Trustees are going to have to make some tough decisions."
Meanwhile, Terry Herbert, the unemployed 55-year-old who made the find, was said to be "overwhelmed" by the attention he has received.
A friend said: "He's gone into meltdown. It's quite sad really because what should have been an incredible story is having a bad
effect on him. Quite simply he is overwhelmed." . Telegraph