Big Payday for Friends Who Found Old Coins in Field
Adam Staples knew he'd found something when his metal detector beeped. But then it beeped again. And again.
Soon "it was just 'beep beep, beep beep, beep beep,'" Staples said.
In a farmer's field in southwest England, Staples and six friends had found a hoard of more than 2,500 silver coins that had been in the ground for almost 1,000 years.
Valued at $5.6 million, they will help experts find out more about England during the period after the Norman invasion.
"The first one was a William the Conqueror coin," Staples said. William the Conqueror, as many English schoolchildren know, led the Norman invasion in 1066.
"It's a really good find. It's a find-of-the-year sort of discovery," Staples said. And that was just the first coin.
The hoard was actually discovered in 2019 but the coins are going on display at the British Museum in London on November 26.
In total, 2,584 silver coins — made between 1066 and 1068 — were found. Some showed William the Conqueror, others his predecessor as king of England — Harold II — who William defeated at the Battle of Hastings.
The discovery has been called "one of the most spectacular" of recent years.
It has taken several years for the hoard to make its way through Britain's system for handling amateur archaeological finds. According to the Treasure Act, anyone who finds historic gold, silver or other precious items must inform the local coroner.
If a coroner declares that the find is treasure, it will belong to the government, and museums can bid for funding to acquire it.
An expert committee sets a value on each find, with the money divided between the owner of the land and the finders. In this case, Staples and his six friends split half of the $5.6 million.
"It's like winning the lottery," said Staples, who plans to continue his treasure-hunting hobby. "I'm not going to give up now. I love it."
