Love Token Found by Treasure Hunter

A gold posy ring believed to be three centuries old has been found by a treasure hunter in Dorking.<--break->“>It was found in early September 2010 by Sebastian Shale while metal detecting. </p>



<p>In its current misshapen state the circa 16<sup>th</sup> or 17<sup>th</sup> century ring has been valued at £200 but once restored it could be worth over £600. </p>



<p>Mr Shale said, “When I first found it I was very excited, not because I had found a historic item – as I didn’t realise the age of the ring – but that I had found gold which in itself is relatively rare. I thought that I would be able to sell it and pay the bills more easily that month!”</p>



<p>He added, “Because of the age of the find and the fact that it is made of more than 10% precious metal it is a legal requirement to declare the find to the coroner.  After that,  it was assessed by the <a href=British Museum.  During this process the find is identified and valued with the view of being obtained by a museum.”

“Initially Guildford Museum were interested and the find was retained for valuation.  Subsequently they were no longer in a position to acquire the find so with agreement from the landowner it is being returned to me shortly. I plan to have the ring restored and it will take pride of place in my collection.”

The ring has a very rare inscription which reads, “‘I give to a true love my heart’”. 

The site where the ring was found has produced a variety of historical finds, including a Celtic Potin coin dating from the First Century BC, Roman, Saxon and Medieval coins and artefacts, through to modern day coins.

Sebastian said, “I belong to a club called the Surrey Searchers. We go out every other week on sites in and around Surrey, although it is difficult to find sites and gain permission from the landowner, and we often have to travel.  The group recently reunited a man with a wedding ring lost while gardening after he made contact through our website!”

 Facts

  •       Anyone who has found gold and silver objects, and groups of coins from the same finds over 300 years old has a legal obligation to report such items under the Treasure Act 1996.
  •       Even prehistoric base-metal assemblages found after 1st January 2003 also qualify as Treasure.
  •        Information can be found at: http://finds.org.uk/treasure.
+ posts

Leave a Reply

Verified by ExactMetrics