Contact with history is not only the job of researchers or archaeologists, but sometimes, ordinary people can also become living witnesses of meaningful historical relics. A magical story happened when a treasure hunter and a farmer happened to meet each other in a vast field, leading them to an amazing discovery: a rare treasure, La coins. 2,000-year-old silver codex – worth up to 200,000 pounds ($267,000)..
The coins are valued and then possibly sold to a museum, with profits split between the farmer and Mr. Smale.Some of the coins (pictured) were minted during the Roman general Mark Antony’s alliance with his lover Cleopatra in Egypt and finds of this size and type are very rare.Mr Smale, 35, found the treasure trove of 600 rare ancient coins in a farmer’s field in Bridport while hunting with friends from the Southern Detectorists club.’It’s a great discovery, my biggest discovery, but I won’t give it up. It’s fun and I’m sticking with it,’ he said.
The incredible discovery was made at an undisclosed farmland site in Bridport during the annual discoverers’ event, attended by 300 people.“When I found it, everyone came to see it and find out what it was,” Mr. Smale said.’It’s impossible to say how much it’s worth, it all depends on so many factors.. How rare they are, what condition they’re in, things like that.’But it’s an important find, and whatever I make, I’ll split with the people I went up there with.’Just a few hours later, Mr Smale’s detector began beeping frantically and he quickly discovered a few coins before calling officials who were cordoning off the area.
They believe it was a jar of coins that had been hit by a plow and scattered throughout the area.The event was organized by Sean MacDonald, 47, who admitted that he would have to pay “a large sum of money” just to witness the discovery.Just a few hours later, Mr Smale’s detector began beeping frantically and he quickly discovered a few coins before calling officials to cordon off the area.A single coin can sell for up to 900 pounds ($12,000), so the fisherman was surprised to discover one pristine coin after another dating from 32 B.C. original.Mike Smale (left), 35, found a treasure trove of 600 rare ancient coins in a farmer’s field in Bridport while hunting with friends from the Southern Detectorists club.
He is pictured here with farmer Anthony ButlerHe added: ‘Bridport is a fractured area after all, it is rich in history, but a find like this is unprecedented.’I’ve never seen a hoard this big before. We found one in Somerset last year but there were only 180 of them and they weren’t the same size.”Mr. MacDonald said he was excited and shaken when he saw the discovery.“The archaeologists who excavated it couldn’t believe what they were seeing because these coins were so rare,” Mr. MacDonald said.The coins will be turned over to the coroner for valuation and may then be sold to a museum, with profits split between the farmer and Mr. Smale.
The Republican and Antony coins were issued before the Roman Invasion of Britain in 43 AD and would have drifted into the pockets of Roman soldiers and civilians alike.The incredible discovery was made at an undisclosed farmland site in Bridport during the annual discoverers’ event, attended by 300 people.An expert who examined photographs of the coins said some of the coins featured images of gods and were issued by the Roman Republic centuries before the birth of Christ.‘Personally, I think a find of this scale and variety will never be found again.’
These coins each celebrated the various legions under his command, Mr Chorney explained.
Elizabeth Taylor as Cleopatra and Richard Burton as her lover Mark Antony in the 1963 film of the Egyptian queen. Some of the coins were minted when the Roman general was allied with Cleopatra in Egypt
The historian who was digging in a farmer’s field in Bridport has told how he found a once-in-a -lifetime hoard of 2000-year-old Roman silver coins worth up to £200,000 ($267,000)
Coin finds such as this are fascinating, and are incredibly important in shedding light on the history of Roman Britain, an expert said
They would have circulated widely in the Roman Empire and travelled a long way.
‘Republican coins and those of Antony were issued before the Roman Invasion of Britain in AD 43, and would have drifted over in the pockets of Roman soldiers and citizens alike’, said Mr Chorney. Other coins were issued by emperors who ruled during the first century AD. ‘One I can see in the photograph was struck for the ill-fated emperor Otho, who only ruled for three months in (January to April AD 69), during the civil wars which followed the assassination of the notorious emperor Nero’, said Mr Chorney.‘Coin finds such as this are fascinating, and are incredibly important in shedding light on the history of Roman Britain’, he said. Coin finds such as this are fascinating, and are incredibly important in shedding light on the history of Roman Britain, an expert said
They would have circulated widely in the Roman Empire and travelled a long way.
‘Republican coins and those of Antony were issued before the Roman Invasion of Britain in AD 43, and would have drifted over in the pockets of Roman soldiers and citizens alike’, said Mr Chorney. Other coins were issued by emperors who ruled during the first century AD. ‘One I can see in the photograph was struck for the ill-fated emperor Otho, who only ruled for three months in (January to April AD 69), during the civil wars which followed the assassination of the notorious emperor Nero’, said Mr Chorney.