24 February 2006
THE BRONZE WAGE
Gardener finds £1m of ancient jewellery
By Richard Smith
A METAL-detector enthusiast has struck gold by unearthing the biggest hoard of Bronze Age treasure found in Britain, worth £1million.
Gardener Steve Taylor, 46, discovered over 40 gold and bronze bracelets, rings and weapons in a field.
Experts estimate the objects - dating from 1300 to 1100 BC - could be worth £1million. The cash will be split 50-50 between Steve and the landowner after a coroner ruled that the items were treasure.
Steve said yesterday: "It should be enough for me to pay off all the bills. I was ecstatic when I realised what I had found. I wasn't doing it for profit but I spent thousands and thousands of hours traipsing across fields."
An inquest into the find heard Steve located it in a field his boss owns near Cirencester, Glos.
A British Museum expert told the hearing that, pieced together, the fragments made at least 38 gold and five bronze objects.
Steve, from Hatherley, Cheltenham, said: "There is probably more - the rest may turn up in ploughing."
richard.smith@mirror.co.uk
mirror.co.uk
THE BRONZE WAGE
Gardener finds £1m of ancient jewellery
By Richard Smith
A METAL-detector enthusiast has struck gold by unearthing the biggest hoard of Bronze Age treasure found in Britain, worth £1million.
Gardener Steve Taylor, 46, discovered over 40 gold and bronze bracelets, rings and weapons in a field.
Experts estimate the objects - dating from 1300 to 1100 BC - could be worth £1million. The cash will be split 50-50 between Steve and the landowner after a coroner ruled that the items were treasure.
Steve said yesterday: "It should be enough for me to pay off all the bills. I was ecstatic when I realised what I had found. I wasn't doing it for profit but I spent thousands and thousands of hours traipsing across fields."
An inquest into the find heard Steve located it in a field his boss owns near Cirencester, Glos.
A British Museum expert told the hearing that, pieced together, the fragments made at least 38 gold and five bronze objects.
Steve, from Hatherley, Cheltenham, said: "There is probably more - the rest may turn up in ploughing."
richard.smith@mirror.co.uk
mirror.co.uk