Mark Copsey, 44, was levelling a recreation ground for a hockey pitch [in Somerset] when he spotted something in the soil.
He found a collection of 3,339 silver coins carrying depictions of an elephant and a hippopotamus buried around 270AD. Mr Copsey immediately scooped them up and put them in a plastic carrier bag - and an inquest has ruled he will now be entitled to a third of their value...
"When I'm driving it's a health and safety rule to look behind me as well, that's how I spotted them. The 'dozer took the top off the pot before I knew it was there, I'm afraid it'll do that every time...
Experts say the coins were made during a time of inflation and their discovery triggered an archaeological investigation that revealed a small Roman settlement. Experts established that the coins were from the 2nd-3rd centuries AD, with 164 being dinarii, (ok) four brass sestertii, and the rest radiates. The museum's laboratory found that some coins had been stacked and carefully bound in textile, and string, some of which remained. Some of the coins carried the heads of empresses, and others emperors, including Philip I, born in Syria of a Syrian father, around 204AD...
The finder and landowner are entitled to an equal share of the market value.
Further details at
The Telegraph. I'm impressed by the high relief on the coins, which look freshly minted.
