A metal detector enthusiast has found around 5 kilos of gold and 2.5 kilos of silver on a farm in Staffordshire.
Based on todays bullion prices, 5 kilos of gold is worth in New Zealand dollars around $226,972. However, as these were precious artifacts this will raise the value to at least ten times more.
Mr Herbert, who has been metal detecting for 18 years, came across the gold and silver treasure on July 5th after asking a farmer friend if he could search on his land.
Staffordshire County Council, Birmingham Museum and the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery have already discussed buying the treasure jointly. The money is paid to the finder, who usually gives half to the landowner — suggesting that both Mr Herbert and the farmer stand to receive a substantial sum.
Under the 1996 Treasure Act in Britain, anyone who finds a group of coins buried together, or any artefact that is 300 or more years old and has a 10 per cent gold or silver content, must declare it to the coroner within 14 days. About 500 such finds are reported each year.
Mr Herbert claimed that finding it with his 14-year-old metal detector was destiny. “I have this phrase that I say sometimes: ’Spirits of yesteryear take me where the coins appear’, but on that day I changed coins to gold,” he said. Here’s a link to a short video of the find:
Metal detector enthusiast unearths huge hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold
If you’ve got some gold “treasure” of your own, and don’t fancy burying it like the previous owner of this hoard did, we cover what other options you have to store gold here. Our gold storage advice also includes how to avoid metal detectors.