Treasure-hunter, 50, who unearthed 99 silver Anglo-Saxon coins in farmer’s field in Suffolk is ‘amazed’ when 1,000-year-old hoard sells for £90,000

• Don Crawley, 50, will take home half of the hefty cash haul with the landowner 
• Metal detectorist, from Bucklesham, near Ipswich, found the pennies in 2017 
• British Museum historians confirmed they were from time of King Aethelred II

A builder who stumbled upon 99 silver Anglo Saxon coins in a farmer’s field has hit the jackpot after they fetched £90,000 at auction.

Don Crawley, 50, will take home half of the hefty cash haul, which is to be split with the landowner of the forgotten Saxon church site in Suffolk.

The metal detectorist, from Bucklesham, near Ipswich, found the pennies in 2017 on his first trip to the farm. 

British Museum historians confirmed the hoard dated back to the first millennium and estimated they were from the time of English King Aethelred II between AD 978-1016.

Don Crawley (left), 50, found 99 silver Anglo Saxon coins when combing through a farmer’s field with his metal detector in 2017 (right)

British Museum historians confirmed the hoard dated back to the first millennium and estimated they were from between AD 978-1016

Who was King Aethelred the Unready?

Aethelred II, also known as Aelthelred the Unready, ruled England from 978 to 1013 and from 1014 to 1016.

He was largely seen as a poor king who failed to stop the Danes invading in 980.

Aethelred ascended to the throne after the assassination of his heir brother, with many detecting Aethelred’s hand in the murder.

This distrust meant that he was not respected by his subjects and thus many refused to take up arms to fight his battles.

When the Danes overran England and settled in towns, he ordered a massacre of the invaders, but this only spurred further invasions which led to Danish king Sweyn I take the throne in 1013.

Aethelred fled to Normandy. 

Speaking after yesterday’s auction in Mayfair, London, an ecstatic Mr Crawley said: ‘I am totally amazed at today’s auction and loved every minute. 

‘I will probably never experience anything like this again.’

The coins were estimated to sell for around £30,000 but to Mr Crawley’s delight were snapped up for triple that price. 

At the time of his discovery, Mr Crawley detailed how he struck lucky after combing across the field on his first attempt.

He said: ‘It was my first visit to this farmers land in Suffolk.

 ‘After walking up an incline in the field, my Deus detector gave off a strong signal and within a short space of time I had recovered 93 coins.

‘The Finds Liaison Officer was called in and they investigated the site which turned out to be a long forgotten Saxon church which had been dismantled by the Normans in the 11th century. 

The builder (pictured with the coins) will take home half of the £90,000 cash haul which the silver pennies fetched

 After carefully examining the markings on the coins, historians estimated they were from the time of English King Aethelred II

The coin haul includes two rare mints – coins made in specific locations – including Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire and a previously unrecorded mint in Louth in Lincolnshire

‘Excavating around they uncovered the remains of human bones and I found another 6 coins.’

The coin haul includes two rare mints – coins made in specific locations – including Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire and a previously unrecorded mint in Louth in Lincolnshire.

Louth had been a fortified settlement in the 10th century with a church containing the remains of St Herefrith who was a bishop.

Auctioneers say the coins may have been buried by a pilgrim around 999 as penitence, due to worries about the ‘impending apocalypse of the Millennium’.

The British Museum considered buying the coins but decided to disclaim them, the auctioneers said.

Nigel Mills, Dix Noonan Webb’s antiquities specialist, said: ‘This is a fantastic result for Don, and shows how the prices realised at auction for a newly found hoard can exceed everyone’s expectations.’  

Source: Read Full Article