Raider of the lost coins
Detectorist inspired by Indiana Jones finds £65,000 Roman hoard
AN INDIANA Jones fan’s boyhood dreams have come true after unearthing a £65,000 hoard of ancient coins.
Metal detectorist George Ridgeway, 30, found the 725 Iron Age and Roman pieces after studying satellite imagery near his Suffolk home.
They date from around 206BC – before the Romans invaded Britain – to the reign of Emperor Claudius in 47AD, when they are thought to have been buried. Mr Ridgeway, who works as a butcher and lives with his parents in the village of Ashbocking, said: ‘Indiana Jones was my boyhood hero.
‘I went to the British Museum when I was younger and I dreamt of finding treasure. I’ve done it and now I’ve added something to Roman history. It’s wonderful.’
His massive haul includes a rare denarius, issued by King Juba I in the ancient African kingdom of Numidia between 60 and 46BC; Iron Age gold coins known as staters, from the reign of Celtic king Cunobelin, who ruled in Colchester from 10AD to 40AD; and a gold Claudius I-era aureus, dated between 41 and 42AD.
Mr Ridgeway’s amazing find has been provisionally valued at £65,000 and the discovery is unveiled in tonight’s episode of Great British History Hunters on More4 at 9pm.
After unearthing it last September, Mr Ridgeway – who plans to invest in a new detector – contacted the Suffolk Finds Liaison Officer, who excavated the coins over the next three days. Mr Ridgeway’s father David, 62, guarded the site at night, sleeping in his truck over the hole to avoid it being plundered.
The stash is being valued by the Treasure Valuation Committee, with a final figure rubber-stamped by Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries. Mr Ridgeway will share a 50-50 split with the unnamed landowner. Colchester + Ipswich Museums are expected to acquire the collection.