A coin dating back over 700 years was found near a Merseyside park.
Russell Brookes, from Newton-le-Willows, has been using a metal detector for around five years- taking his device out across local areas in the hopes of turning up a piece of history. The coronavirus pandemic halted Russell's searches for a while, but he has recently been back out and made a big discovery.
He told the ECHO: "I started again last week. Went out down near Sankey Canal in a field I have permission to detect. Heard a beep and thought is was the signal for a pop can. It turned out to be a 700 year old coin."
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"My next oldest coin from the same field was an Elizabeth I sixpence from 1562."
The coin found last week is thought to date back to between 1272 - 1307. According to the British Museum: "It's a silver hammered penny, diameter 19mm, weight approx. 1.45g, obverse side Edward I, reverse side Long Cross. Value approximation £30 to £50 for condition some better conditions have sold for £100 to £150.
"King Edward I of the house Plantagenet, the first son of Henry III, Edward joined the 9th Crusade to the Holy Land. He was crowned at Westminster Abbey in 1274 as it took two years to return from the crusades after his fathers death in 1272.
"Edward I was a tall man for his era, at 6ft2in he gained the nickname Longshanks. He was known as "Hammer of Scots'" because of the brutality he conducted on Berwick in 1296. Edward I was responsible for restoring royal authority after the reign of Henry III, and establishing Parliament as a permanent institution for reforming the law through statutes."
Russell has donated the coin to Liverpool Museum to be recorded by the find liaison officer.
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