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The Shropshire coin hoard


How rain revealed Shropshire’s Roman coin haul
Wednesday 26th October 2011, 10:00PM BST.
 
The Shropshire coin hoard
A sudden downpour led a rookie treasure hunter to one of the biggest hoards of Roman coins ever found in Shropshire, he revealed today.

Nic Davies from Ford, near Shrewsbury, has become the envy of time-served metal detecting enthusiasts after digging up the haul of bronze coins in 2009.

The hoard, which has been described as an ‘exceptional find’ was yesterday declared as treasure by coroner John Ellery at a hearing in Wem.

Speaking after the hearing Mr Davies said: “I’d never hunted for treasure before with a metal detector but a family friend has done it for 34 years, so I guess this hoard gives them renewed hope.

“I’d been at the site for three or four hours and found nothing.

“It started to rain so I stepped into a gap in the bushes and then the metal detector beeped so curiosity got the better of me.

“I found one coin just beneath the soil and then dug down and found more and more coins. I was quite shocked.”

Yesterday’s treasure trove inquest heard from Peter Reavill, finds liaison officer for the Portable Antiquities Scheme, which records archaeological finds made by the public.

He said the coins at the top of the pot appear to date from the period 333-335AD, late in the reign of British Roman Emperor Constantine I.

Coins at the bottom appeared to be about 10 years older, suggesting the pot was either part of a community ceremony to honour the gods or perhaps about six months’ pay for a Roman legionnaire.

He said British Museum experts who examined the find said the coins came from across the Roman empire in places like Greece, Turkey, Germany and France.

Designs on the backs of some of the coins, which are known as nummi, allude to the legend of the twin founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus, who can be clearly be seen suckling their she-wolf mother on one.

Another design celebrates the city of Constantinople as the ‘new Rome’.

Experts have said the hoard lifted the lid on the way people in Shropshire lived at that time, revealing that people outside the south of Britain were used to using coins as a currency system.

Dr Eleanor Ghey from the British Museum said: “This is an exceptional find of late Roman coins from Shropshire.

“It challenges the view that the wealth circulating in the south of Britain at this time had little impact on the areas further north and west.

“Some of the coins in the hoard were produced in the eastern Mediterranean and travelled a long distance in the short time before they were buried.

“The fact that the coins were still in their pot when it was excavated has given us a fascinating snapshot of Roman life. Whoever buried these coins kept their location secret for a number of years before adding more to the hoard.”

Emma-Kate Lanyon, curator for Shropshire Museums said: “This is a very exciting find and probably the largest coin hoard, at least in modern times, to be recovered from the county.

“The Treasure Act and Portable Antiquities Scheme is now over 14 years old and has vastly increased our understanding of Shropshire’s past by bringing finds like this to the attention of archaeologists.”

Giving evidence, Mr Reavill added the lower parts of the coin pot also contained several fragments of preserved cloth and an iron nail. He said it was hugely significant, as organic remains normally rot in the ground. The presence of the materials could, he said, suggest a nailed up bag, deposited within the hoard.

This practice, although rare, is possible evidence of a ritual offering.

In the Roman world gifts were given to the gods in anticipation of future results, such as recovery of stolen property, improved health or a good harvest.

The inquest heard the site of the find cannot be disclosed for security reasons. The inquest heard the coins were found just off a bridleway in a wooded area near Shrewsbury. Mr Ellery said: “I have heard all the evidence I am going to hear into discovery of the Roman coin hoard in the Shrewsbury area. I have the exact location but I’m not going to disclose the precise details to preserve the integrity of the site.

“It’s clear the finder did not have permission to enter the land with his detector. People should always seek permission. The advantage for the finder is that he is likely to receive a substantial reward for the find.

“I conclude and declare that the hoard of 9,315 coins found by Mr Davies are treasure.”

By Tom Johannsen


Read more: http://www.shropshirestar.com/news/2011/10/26/how-rain-revealed-shropshires-roman-coin-haul/#ixzz1bzcWHt7d (http://www.shropshirestar.com/news/2011/10/26/how-rain-revealed-shropshires-roman-coin-haul/#ixzz1bzcWHt7d)

interesting article, especially the bit when he didnt have permission !   

H

as it as said "However Nic Davies who found the coins did not have permission from the landowner to use a detector." do you think he should get any of the money !!!!!!!!!!


what do members think !!!!! ::) ::) ???


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The coins offer a "fascinating snapshot" of Roman life, according to the British Museum

I think he should get....................................6 months ;D

The finder should get nothing,he was on the site for three or four hours without permission

In fact I hope he is prosecuted by the land owner for theft/criminal damage

If he is awarded half the value,does that mean we can all go on farmers fields without permission, find hoards and get rewarded.

He shouldn't have been there.

So he deserves.............zilch.

I understand and agree that entering land without permission is a big no no. But lets not jump to conclusions here.

Was he detecting on the land or on the bridleway. Did he entered the land which might have afforded more tree shelter
against the elements - we've all run for the nearest shelter without thinking, I know I have.

I'm sure this will/has been looked at before any decision was made, so I think making rash judgements without knowing ALL the facts
is not really helpful to the hobby or individuals.

Mike

i havent ran for the nearset shelter from the elements,,although ive tected in the middle of a raging thunderstorm before and the farmer farmer walking past knowing im a idiot ;D,,,,,,,most bridleways and pathways are owned by someone,he shouldent have been there without permission ,or just maybe in that posistion  i would take the hoard home and then phone flo giving him referance to a regular farm i tect WITH PERMISSION ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D{hope the vexatious blogger with incredibly itchy underpants isnt listening ;D} 

Is a difficult one, in that he's done the right thing by owning up to the find, but is clearly in the wrong being there in the first place. That said though I dare say a few of us have detected Bridlepaths, common land. wandered onto the wrong field or paths between fields over the years. Possibly be accident, but often without thinking.

Its going to be interesting to see how the law percieves it on this occasion.

By the way the photo is not the finder - its Peter Revell - the FLO we have had at a few of our rallies in the past!

I am going to watch this case with great interest as I feel the outcome may well give fuel to our detractors. We all know of one who will be doing cartwheels about this! But he's best ignored!

"just Neil"

“It’s clear the finder did not have permission to enter the land with his detector. People should always seek permission. The advantage for the finder is that he is likely to receive a substantial reward for the find.

“I conclude and declare that the hoard of 9,315 coins found by Mr Davies are treasure.”

it's not clear whether the coroner said the finder is likely to receive a substantial reward or the writer of the article.....it starts with inverted commas but does'nt end with them ??  :-\......byron

It could be that he was on the land purely by mistake.

Some farms have hundreds of acres and, sometimes, don't own a field in the middle of others!  I have some
farms which I thought were owned by one farmer that actually belonged to another.

I have accidentally detected on fields I thought belonged to a particular famer AND I know others that
have done so. No doubt you may have!

There is a likelihood the finder wouldn't have declared the hoard if he knew he didn't have permission,
but declared it thinking he did have permission?

It sounds like you are finding someone guilty without all the facts. ALL the facts weren't mentioned in
the article.

Innocent until PROVEN guilty!

 i think that there should be some sort of repercusion as this may say to other members of the public that they can go and acquire a detector and just go where ever they want to. i,m lucky that i know a lot of landowners that let me go on, but people just going out there could spoil it for others. this i,m sure would encourage night hawkers aswell..
i,ve only been doing this since this summer but you do have to abide by the law and respect the landowners requirements... without them we,d be knackered....
   
 

Well said Bob !!