Four of the weirdest, wonderful and rarest treasures unearthed in county

From a horse’s head to a silver boar, here are some of the unique items discovered

LEICESTERSHIRE is home to an amazingly rich and colourful history.

One of the country’s most controversial monarchs King Richard III is known to have fought and died in the county.

And with this rich history, many artefacts have been left behind in times past that metal detectorists and archaeologists are keen to get their hands on.

So here are four of the weirdest, most wonderful and rarest treasures found in Leicestershire: 1. A golden aestel of a horse’s head

This peculiar-looking object was found in 2016 in Melton and dates back to the early medieval era.

But what is an aestel? According to historians, the original function of this artefact is unclear, but it shares features with a growing corpus of objects thought possibly to be pointers used while reading books.

This object appears to be a threedimensional horse-like head wrapped in gold.

After the treasure was recorded, this item was donated to a museum.

2. Silver badge of a male boar

This unique badge was found during a search for the Battle of Bosworth

field and provides good evidence for the presence of a member of the king’s personal household in

the area, according to archaeologists.

This find was so rare that it appeared in the ITV1 Series Britain’s Secret Treasures on July 22, 2012 and can be seen at the Bosworth Battlefield Centre.

3. A silver vervel

Ever heard of a vervel? This silver object was found by a metal detector in Isley cum Langley on January 2012.

The item, which historians believe to be a vervel, was a ring that used to be attached to a hawk’s leg.

It has been dated to 1597 and has writing that appears to read “[NOTTI] INGAM”, although historians have struggled to make out the full writing.

The items is now part of a museum collection.

4. A gold finger ring

The unique ring was found in October 2012 in Dunton Bassett by a metal detectorist. Archaeologists believe the ring could date back to some time between 1200 and 1300.

The ring was declared as treasure and now lives in the Harborough Museum. Similar rings have been found across the country and are awaiting validation.

Glen Foard from the Battlefields Trust shows new evidence of a silver gilt Boar at a press conference at which it was announced that the true site for the Battle of Bosworth had been found. The Battle of Bosworth was one of the four historic battles in Britain (Naseby, Hastings and the Battle of Britain). It was the last time an English King was killed in battle and it ended the War of the Roses, a 30 year dynastic feud. Credit: Steve Woods / newsteam.co.uk