‘I think I’ve found something a bit special’: friends strike gold

Items ‘probably earliest Iron Age gold’ found in UK

Two amateur treasure hunters have found what is thought to be the oldest Iron Age gold jewellery ever discovered in Britain.

Life-long friends and metal detectorists Mark Hambleton and Joe Kania said they could not believe their eyes when they found gold buried in a muddy Staffordshire field last year.

Disbelief then turned to shock as the enthusiasts unearthed four torcs – three necklaces and a bracelet – thought to be up to 2,500 years old a metre apart.

Experts said the “unique” find, on farmland in Leekfrith in the Staffordshire Moorlands, had international significance.

The county is gaining a reputation as a hiding place for some of the country’s greatest historical treasures, with the latest discovery following the 2009 Anglo-Saxon Staffordshire Hoard find, officially valued at £3.285 million.

This latest discovery was found about 45 miles north of Hammerwich, near Lichfield – the site of the vast Saxon hoard, made up of 3,900 pieces of precious metal and currently on display in UK museums.

This latest find of Iron Age jewellery, thought to be equivalent to 18-carat gold, was found just beneath the surface of farmland just before Christmas 2016.

Mr Hambleton, 59, said: “Joe said to me, ‘I think I’ve found something a bit special’ and he was dangling it in front of my face.

“That’s when I started to get a bit dizzy and weak at the knees. I said to him, ‘You know what this means: we have to search the area now’.”

After digging up the rest of the gold, Mr Hambleton admitted he had slept with the haul next to his bed.

The gold was handed to experts at Birmingham Museums, with archaeologists from Staffordshire County Council and Stoke-on-Trent City Council brought in to investigate the finds site.

There are hopes the collection – thought to be from Europe and most likely Germany or France – can now be secured for permanent display in the city.

Dr Julia Farley, curator of British and European Iron Age collections for the British Museum, said: “This unique find is of international importance. It dates to around 400-250 BC, and is probably the earliest Iron Age gold work ever discovered in Britain.”

A preliminary valuation is due to take place, with the detectorists planning to split the value of their find 50-50 with the field’s owner, Stuart Heath, who farms 640 acres of land where the find was made.

An inquest is to be held in North Staffordshire, where coroner Ian Smith will rule if the pieces are treasure.

Pictures: PA. Above: Joe Kania, left, and Mark Hambleton. Above right : the gold torcs. The decoration on the sole bracelet has excited experts because it is thought to be some of the earliest Celtic art from Britain.