In Britain’s back gardens and alleyways, amid ancient woodlands and on coastal bluffs, in sunken lanes and deep in the velvety brown earth of our fields, lies hidden treasure. Coins, pottery, bone; a remarkable array of fragments each telling us something about the past. These may not be made from gold or silver, but they are precious beyond belief.
Until now, the 1996 Treasure Act has protected many of these priceless pieces of our past – but not all of them. According to the act, only those artefacts that are more than 300 years old and made of precious metals or are part of a collection of valuable objects need to be disclosed and offered for sale to a museum. Under this current definition of treasure, it’s possible that untold numbers of fascinating finds slip back into the shadows as soon as they come to light.
