Truemors
is reporting from
Member
NP Rank:
NP Rank:
Anglo-Saxon Buried Treasure Trove Discovered
Share:
by Alyzee | September 24, 2009 at 11:07 am
1160 views | 1 Recommendation | 2 comments
The largest Anglo-Saxon treasure ever found was discovered buried under a field in Staffordshire, abcnews reports. The collection includes around 1,500 gold and silver pieces that date back to the 7th century. The excavated treasure may take more than a year to be valued, according to the BBC.
The treasure was found by amateur treasure hunter Terry Herbert as he stalked the farmland with a metal detector.
The treasure discovery will help archeologists learn more than ever before about the Anglo-Saxons who ruled England from the 5th century to the 11th century during the Norman conquest.
"This is just a fantastic find completely out of the blue," Roger Bland, who managed the cache's excavation, told The Associated Press. "It will make us rethink the Dark Ages. That's basically what it's going to do."
There are laws in the UK about finding treasure in England and Wales, so the finder of the treasure cannot keep it. Obeying the Treasury Act of 1996, the Anglo-Saxon treasure was reported to a coroner who declared it officially as treasure, which means it is owned by the Crown.
To read more about the laws about finding buried treasure in England and Wales, click here.
What is NowPublic?
NowPublic lets people work together to cover news events around the world.
Crowd Power
Recommendations (1)
Anonymous user
Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (2)
at 00:36 on September 25th, 2009
...however, the finder shares the value of the find 50/50 with the landowner, so he's still going to do very nicely out of it! :)
- reply
Thomas Lister (not verified)at 00:08 on September 26th, 2009
The significance and symbolism of this find should be emphasised. It is national treasure like the Crown Jewels, but for the English Nation. When the Normans came over and imposed their iron rule, the Anglo saxons did not go away, but rather form the racial background or ancestry to the broad sweep of the English common people, who have their roots in the Saxon heptarchy, as opposed to the aristocracy. This was certainly true, and still is, although politically obfuscated, before the Islamic invasion after the Second World War. The discovery of this hord,which represents the battle trophies of the Mercian saxons, amassed at their capital near Lichfield, is not simply an arahaeological phenomoenon to be "wowed" at, but its importance is in what it represents, i.e. English nationhood. It constitutes and gives identity to the English Nation and should be so treated. Incidentally I am not an English Nationalist, but simply an objective observer of events and artefacts of historical significance, be they Assyrian, Babylonian, Egyptian, Roman etc. In all the comments on the find so far, I have not heard a proper evaluation of their significance brought out, this includes the "thought for the day" on the BBC Radio 4 Sat. 26th Sept. which said nothing of moment. Their seems to be every attempt to keep the people in the dark about their history.