Treasure Finds From the United Kingdom
British Museum Displays Range of Treasures From Around the Country
Sep 14, 2009
With their long history of occupation, the British Isles have been a fruitful hunting ground for treasure seekers. Buried treasure, either lost or deliberately hidden, has often yielded to an archaeologist with a keen eye, a farmer ploughing his fields or a hopeful amateur brandishing a metal detector. The following finds of treasure are on display at the British Museum.
The Ringlemere Gold Cup
This partially crushed cup was discovered in 2001 by metal detectorist Cliff Bradshaw near the village of Ringlemere in Kent. Archaeological fieldwork suggests that the cup comes from a Bronze Age cemetery. Judged to have been buried sometime between 1700 and 1500 BC, the Ringlemere Cup is crafted from a single piece of thick gold sheet.
The Mold Cape
The Mold Cape, a finely-made object beaten from a single ingot of gold, was found by workmen quarrying for stone near Mold in Wales in 1833. Dating to the early Bronze Age (1900-1600 BC), the cape was in several pieces when first discovered and it wasn’t immediately apparent what it was supposed to be. It wasn’t until the 1950s that scholars deduced that it was a cape worn over the shoulders and a serious reconstruction could take place.
The Snettisham Treasure
Snettisham in Norfolk is one of the key sites in British pre-history, with finds of magnificent Iron Age jewellery being made here in 1948, 1950 and 1990. Five gold torcs, worn around the neck, were first discovered during ploughing, with subsequent finds coming to light in a similar fashion over the following years. These included the Great Torc, regarded as the symbol of the British Iron Age.
In 1990 a local metal detectorist, Charles Hodder, found a huge deposit of torcs still in situ, previous finds having been dispersed by ploughing. Subsequent excavation discovered a further five hoards. The finds from Snettisham are divided between Norwich Castle Museum and the British Museum.
The Mildenhall Treasure
Discovered in 1942 in the Suffolk countryside, the Mildenhall Treasure is a stunning set of Roman silver tableware dating mainly from the fourth century AD. It is one of the most important treasures of Roman silver ever found, and now forms part of the British Museum’s Romano-British collection.
The Hoxne Hoard
Metal detectorist Eric Lawes was trying to find a lost hammer when he uncovered large numbers of gold and silver coins in a field near Hoxne, in Suffolk. With the aid of experts from the Suffolk Archaeological Unit, it soon became clear that he had found the largest hoard of Roman gold and silver found to date on British soil. The treasure, consisting of over 15,000 late Roman silver coins, around 560 gold coins, and jewellery, was probably buried sometimes in the 420s or 430s AD.
The Sutton Hoo Burial
Shortly before the outbreak of World War Two, excavations at Sutton Hoo in Suffolk uncovered an intact ship burial dating to the seventh century AD. The finds included an elegantly menacing helmet and face mask, Byzantine silver vessels and a rich array of arms and armour. The burial is thought to belong to King Raedwald.
Source:
Treasure - Finding Our Past, Richard Hobbs (British Museum Press, 2003)
 |
 |
