The Treasure Team | Just another Portable Antiquities Scheme blogs weblog

Recent Donations

A find from the mud…
Mudlark John Higginbotham discovered this interesting Post-Medieval silver toilet implement (LON-F6F381) on the foreshore of the

Toilet implement set from the Thames Foreshore

River Thames. The individual elements of the tool, which could have been used in various aspects of personal hygiene and the application of cosmetics, overlap with one another to form a three-dimensional female figure. There are not many exact parallels recorded, although examples of the individual elements are known. The preservation of this complete set makes it all the more interesting.

Only those people with a license from the Port of London Authority (PLA) are allowed to search with metal detectors on the Thames foreshore and to disturb the ground. All others should restrict their activities to searching with their eyes alone!

John and the owner of the foreshore, the Crown Estate, agreed to waive their right to a reward for this item so that it could be placed in the Tower of London at no expense. Thank you both!

Silver cuff link showcasing a royal occasion
This single silver cuff link (SUSS-5904A7) was found by Tyndall Jones in Warningcamp, West Sussex. It would have originally been joined by a metal link to a matching cuff link which would have enabled them to hold together two pieces of fabric. Cuff links with this design ‘Crown over two hearts’ are likely to be associated with a commemoration of the marriage of Charles II to Catharine of Braganza in 1662.

Silver cufflink from Warningcamp, West Sussex

You may have seen the Portable Antiquities Scheme’s Dr Michael Lewis talking about a similar cufflink in the collection of the British Museum on the ITV series Britain’s Secret Treasures. Michael has been researching these items and has noted that finders have reported almost 90 cuff links of this type since the start of the Treasure Act in 1997. Before then, there weren’t any records of these items at all!

Both Tyndall and the owner of the land, Nigel Draffan, waived their right to a reward for this piece of Treasure in order that it could be acquired by the nearby Littlehampton Museum. Many thanks Tyndall and Nigel!

Donations

An Early Medieval silver-gilt disc brooch, now in the care of the Isle of Wight Heritage Service. Both the finder and landowners waived their right to a reward in this case (ref. IOW-A33D42)

Finds reported under the Treasure Act and recorded with the Portable Antiquities Scheme are occasionally acquired by museums at reduced or no cost, thanks to the generosity of finders and landowners. It is fitting to highlight these finds and to thank those individuals who have foregone a financial reward in order to see the finds in a museum collection where they can be studied and enjoyed by all. Each year, almost 10% of finds reported as potential Treasure are donated to museums, which is a great statistic. We’ll be trying to keep this blog updated periodically with recent donations as they are made.

How are donations made?
Finds which meet the criteria for ‘Treasure’ under the Treasure Act may be claimed by the Crown and placed in an appropriate museum. That museum is required to pay a reward to the finder and landowner equal to the market value of the find, but the finder and landowner can elect to waive their reward, thus enabling the museum to acquire the find without resorting to public expense. We refer to these acts as ‘donations’.

Most of the finds recorded with the Portable Antiquities Scheme are not Treasure, but a museum may nonetheless be interested in acquiring them. A Finds Liaison Officer or National Finds Advisor may recognise an item’s significance and speak to a museum curator about the item; if the museum curator wishes to acquire the find, they can be put in touch with the finder/landowner. The finder/landowner may then choose to donate the find to the museum if they wish.

Private collections
Many finders have built up their collections of archaeological finds over the years, and it is worth thinking about a long-term home for this material when the owner passes on. Museums may be willing to accept the material as a donation and it is advisable to discuss this possibility when the opportunity arises – before it’s too late!

Questions?
If you have any questions about donations, or if you are considering donating your find, speak to your local Finds Liaison Officer or the Treasure Team at the British Museum (treasure@britishmuseum.org).

Two new hoards of Treasure on show at the British Museum

Yesterday, 3 December 2012, saw the launch of the latest Portable Antiquities Scheme Annual Report (2011) and the Treasure Annual Report (2010) at the British Museum. Among the finds on display for guests to view were a selection of items from a hoard of Viking silver found near Bedale, North Yorkshire, and most of the coins from a hoard of Roman solidi found near St Albans, Hertfordshire. Both of these finds have now been put on temporary display in the British Museum for members of the public to enjoy while they go through the treasure administration procedure.

The hoard of Viking Silver material found in the Bedale Area on display in Room 2 of the British Museum

The hoard of Viking material is now in the Portable Antiquities and Treasure case in Room 2 (‘The Changing Museum’ gallery). On show is a large (546g) necklace composed of four strands of twisted silver wire, now corroded into position in the form of a sizable collar. This was not a discrete item of jewellery! The silver arm ring in the case appears to be well worn compared to similar examples from Silverdale, Lancashire hoard. The iron sword pommel is difficult to view with the naked eye because it is heavily encrusted in soil, but an X-ray by the British Museum’s Department of Conservation and Scientific Research has revealed the presence of elaborate gold-foil decoration. The case is filled out with a selection of some of the silver ingots (elongated masses of metal) found in the hoard.

The finders of the hoard, Stuart Campbell and Steve Creswell, attended the report launch and spoke to guests and the press about the find. When they initially located the hoard in May 2012, they only removed a few of the items before they realised what it was, and, following best-practice, they contacted their local Finds Liaison Officer (FLO) Becky Griffiths rather than attempting to remove any more of the hoard. Becky was able to organise a careful excavation of the hoard, which gave archaeologists the opportunity to record contextual information. As the hoard contains items that are over 300 years old and composed of over 10% precious metal, it was reported to the Coroner for North Yorkshire (Eastern District) as potential Treasure, under the Treasure Act 1996.

X-ray of the sword pommel from the Bedale Hoard

Yorkshire Museum hopes to acquire the find in due course. A report on the contents of the hoard has been prepared for the coroner by the British Museum, and the Coroner will hold an inquest to determine whether the find constitutes Treasure. We hope to have the hoard on display at the British Museum into the New Year.

The hoard of Roman gold solidi (coins) from the late 4th – early 5th century AD was found near St Albans, Hertfordshire, in September 2012. 141 of the 159 coins are currently in the British Museum (the remainder are currently still in the safe keeping of Verulamium Museum in St Albans). The coins have been put in the changing display in the Citi Money Gallery, and are accompanied by a short presentation on the discovery and identification of the coins. The coins from near St Albans represent one of the largest hoards of solidi ever found in Britain – the largest, from the Hoxne hoard, are in the collection of the British Museum.

As the hoard represents a find of two or more coins at least 300 years old containing more than 10% precious metal, it was also reported to the

Roman solidi from the hoard found near St Albans, Hertforshire, on display in the Citi Money Gallery at the British Museum

Coroner for Hertfordshire as potential Treasure. Verulamium Museum hopes to acquire the hoard, and a comprehensive report on the coins is being prepared for the Coroner, who will hold an inquest in due course to make a ruling as to whether or not the hoard fulfils the criteria for Treasure. It is anticipated that the coins will be on show at the British Museum for about a month’s time.

If the Coroners for North Yorkshire and Hertfordshire declare the respective hoards to be Treasure, they will vest in the Crown, which will seek to place them in the local museums mentioned above. The hoards will be valued by the independent Treasure Valuation Committee and the finders and owners of the land where the hoards were found will be eligible to receive a reward equal to the market value of the hoards.

Exhibition in East Sussex on the role of the Coroner

Television shows and movies, and sadly, real-life tragic events have familiarised the public with the concept of the coroner as the person who investigates sudden or mysterious deaths. Important as this is, it represents only one aspect of the coroner’s duties.

Coroners also play an important part in the administration of the Treasure Act 1996. The coroner is the body to whom finds of potential Treasure must be reported, and he or she decides -

a.) whether the find constitutes Treasure under the terms of the Treasure Act 1996
b.) who should be regarded as the finder or finders
c.) the nature of the find circumstances – specifically where and when the item(s) was found.

The Eastbourne Society (East Sussex) has organised a temporary exhibition at the Eastbourne Heritage Centre on the many roles of local magistrates, the coroner in particular. The exhibition ‘Crime, Punishment and Local Justice’, runs through 29 October 2011. Among other things it sheds light on the coroner’s place in the Treasure process and provides information about the various stages involved in inquests into items of Treasure, their valuation and acquistion by museums. More information on the exhibition and the Eastbourne Heritage Centre can be found here.

With upwards of 20 cases of potential Treasure reported every year since 2004 in East Sussex, the coroner’s office there has certainly been well occupied in fulfilling its duties in this respect.

The Heritage Centre is run mostly by volunteers, and looks a lovely place to visit if you have the opportunity.

An item from Eastbourne recently acquired by the British Museum

Medieval Late at the British Museum

Elaborate hairstyles, choral singing and Middle English were all on the menu at the most recent themed late opening of the British Museum. The ‘Medieval Late’ evening on Friday, 8 July saw the grounds and central area of the museum, as well as many of the galleries, open until 9:00pm while a host of themed events occurred throughout. The current major exhibition ‘Treasures of Heaven: saints, relics and devotion in medieval Europe’ was the obvious source of inspiration for the evening, and the starting point for the plethora of informational activities and refreshments available to guests.

The regular closing time for the British Museum is 5:30pm, so for some guests it undoubtedly came as a pleasant surprise to find that they weren’t being ushered towards the door at that time, but rather encouraged to stay for the festivities to come. There was something for everyone on the agenda: gallery talks and lectures for the studious, art classes and chances to dress-up for the hands-on, theatre and singing for the observant and food and drink for the, uh, gluttonous.

After hearing her speak at the staff opening of ‘Treasures of Heaven’, I wanted to attend project curator Anna Harnden’s gallery talk. Swelled to capacity, the southeast corner of the Medieval gallery (Room 40) is the home of the subject of Anna’s talk, a woodcut of the Virgin and Child with Eight Virgin Saints. For someone who doesn’t know his Catherine from his Barbara, this was a lively and useful overview of the lives and legends of some of the most important virgin saints (and their attributes), which is crucial to appreciating reliquaries on display in the main exhibition. Her introduction to the cult of saints also helped to put into context many of the objects which are found by members of the public and recorded by the PAS, like this recent find of a possible badge of St Ursula from Lancashire (LANCUM-61F133).

As many will appreciate, the panoply of spaces in the British Museum make it adaptable to a variety of uses, and the organisers of the ‘Medieval Late’ took advantage of this. Colleagues spoke in admiration at the wonderful sounds and atmosphere of the Enlightenment Gallery (Room 1) generated by the Renaissance Singers, who kept to the theme by including medieval songs in their repertoire. The Mausoleum of Halikarnassos gallery (Room 2) with its two specially-lit colossal statues formed the stage for a young acting troupe’s twist on Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, which was seen by an overflowing crowd of onlookers. Even a presentation on the art of medieval hairdressing for film and theatre was given a dramatic location in front of the Nereid Monument in Room 17.

The special period menu available in the Great Court was fairly adventurous and there were several guests who appeared to sample most of what was on offer: wild boar sausage, ox tongue, and pickled vegetables. I tried the hard-boiled duck egg with mustard sauce and spinach, which proved a heart, tasty treat for a reasonably-priced £1.50. I did feel that the caterers were ambitous in their attempt to sell bottles of ‘Mead’ – actually Fuller’s ‘Honey Dew’ Ale – for £5.00 each, but obviously the general public were happy to imbibe, as the beer sold out by 7:30pm.

I think the museum did well to put on a host of activities based on a central theme whilst at the same time allowing those who simply wanted to wander the galleries, visit the shops or enjoy the restaurants, the opportunity to do so at their own pace, without having the medieval world thrust upon them. Nonetheless the sheer size of the museum means that many events can be going on in disparate locations and it can be difficult for a visitor who does want to engage with the theme to decide what is worth attending. It would be great to see a specially constructed information ‘Hub’ on the forecourt or colonnade to grab the attention of guests as they enter the museum and direct them to the ongoing events and inform them of cancellations. That aside, the Medieval Late was an enjoyable, entertaining and worthwhile programme which greatly complimented the ongoing major exhibition. If they haven’t visited ‘Treasures of Heaven’ already, I’d bet this evening inspired a few more guests to check it out.

Wickham Market Hoard of Iron Age gold coins

Currently on display in the Portable Antiquities & Treasure case in Gallery 41 of the British Museum is a selection of coins belonging to a hoard which represents the largest collection of Iron Age gold coins found since the mid-19th century. The selection of 50 coins accounts for only a small fraction (6%) of the entire hoard, which has 840 coins in total.

The Wickham Market (Suffolk) hoard was found in the Spring of 2008 by two metal detectorists, who also found the base and body parts of a wheel thrown ceramic jar. After identification and cataloguing by the Iron Age curator, Ian Leins, it was concluded that the majority of the coins were struck between 40BC- 15BC. This is a period of time linked with perhaps one of the best known tribes of Celtic Britain, the Iceni. The Iceni tribe occupied the area of Norfolk and Suffolk and were immortalised after being led by Boudica in a large scale revolt against the Roman legions.

Following the reporting of the hoard archaeologists from the Suffolk County Council Archaeological service were given the opportunity to excavate the site. This allowed them the chance to assess the area of deposition and investigate for other possible features. Topsoil excavation revealed that the coins were scattered a short distance from the original burial spot. An additional 52 coins were uncovered and the archaeologists were able to make several conclusions: that the location of the hoard conforms to other sites in Norfolk, where gold items have been found buried on high ground; that the site has a continuing phase of activity up to the end of the Roman period; and although tribal affinities in the area remain complex, it is believed that the coins, due to their contemporary value, may have been deposited as part of a ritual practice . In terms of qualifying as Treasure under the Treasure Act 1996 the find is clearly a single find, confirmed by the discovery of pot sherds of a contemporary date.

The Treasure Valuation Committee has recommended a valuation of £300,000 approved by the Secretary of State and agreed by all interested parties. From May 2011 Colchester and Ipswich Museum Service will also be displaying a selection of coins to begin its monumental task of raising the funds towards the acquisition of this find. The fundraising campaign will be a testament to an incredibly important discovery for this area of the country.

PAS shines at Current Archaeology 2011

This weekend, for the third year out of the last four, the British Museum plays host to the annual Current Archaeology Conference. The conference is well-known for the breadth of topics covered and the diverse array of talented speakers taking part simultaneously across two lecture theatres. It also bestows its own unique set of reader-chosen awards, and the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) featured heavily in those given out this year.

Saturday’s papers featured several appearances by members of the PAS, the co-hosting organisation. Rob Collins, Finds Liaison Officer for the North East region, served as co-chair for the popular morning session on Hadrian’s Wall. Roger Bland, Head of the Portable Antiquities Scheme, chaired the specialist afternoon session on recent finds of Treasure, which saw talks given by the PAS’s Sam Moorhead (on the Frome Hoard), Ian Richardson (on the Hackney Double Eagle coins) and Laura McLean and Stephanie White (on the Burnham on Crouch Bronze Age Hoard). The British Museum’s Nick Ashton (Dept. of P&E) also delivered a fantastic account of the current work on the evidence for Britain’s oldest humans at Happisburgh, Norfolk, and Ian Leins (Dept. of C&M) anchored a prominent session on Britain’s Iron Age Celts.

Throughout the day, the tireless work of conference facilitator Philippa Walton kept things running smoothly and on time. In the large foyer of the British Museum’s Clore centre, amongst the collection of book and package-tour retailers, and the various other heritage advocacy groups, Wendy Scott, Adam Daubney, Stephanie Smith, Ros Tyrell, Danielle Wootton and Erica Darch manned the PAS desk and handed out numerous flyers and copies of annual reports to interested visitors.

The highlight of this first day’s events was the handing out of the Current Archaeology awards for the most outstanding work of the last year. The PAS made out fantastically well against stiff competition, with Sam Moorhead taking home the gilded trowel for Archaeologist of the Year for his work as a National Finds Advisor on Roman Coinage and in particular for his involvement in work on the Frome Hoard and for his publication of the popular ‘AD410: The Year that Shook Rome’. Sam’s acceptance speech attempted to deflect attention away from himself and he claimed his role with the PAS automatically exposed him to the type of popular interest stories that most archaeologists would not have the privilege of working on, but those voting had already taken that into account when making their decision. Sam also graciously led everyone in a toast to our recently departed colleague, the irreplaceable medieavalist Geoff Egan. The Excavation of the Frome Hoard received an award itself, for ‘Rescue Excavation of the Year’ and Sam Moorhead accepted that trophy on behalf of colleagues Anna Booth, Katie Hinds. Steve Minnit and the finder of the hoard, Dave Crisp.

Taking advantage of a unique opportunity to capture several hundred archaeologists together in one space on a Saturday evening, the organisers of the Current Archaeology conference treated all those present to a once-in-a-decade appearance by the (in)famous rock band ‘Timothy Darvill and the Standing Stones’. Displaying a surprising range of musical knowledge, the group (led by early morning presenter and lead guitarist Professor Timonthy Darvill of Bournemouth University) crooned away to songs from some of the industry’s best-known talents, from Elvis Prestly to CCR, the Beatles to the Rolling Stones, Blondie to the Kaiser Chiefs. What better way to end the evening than to pogo along with fan Julian Richards to ‘I Predict a Riot’? (Yes, we are geeks…)

British Museum Friends Evening

Yesterday (13 December) staff from the department of Portable Antiquities & Treasure (PA&T) and Conservation and Scientific Research (CSR) took part in a host of activities as part of a ‘Treasure’ themed evening for the Friends of the British Museum. These evenings, where members have an exclusive opportunity to learn from the experts about current operations at the museum, are one of the advantages of being a ‘BM Friend’.

The Treasure Team was stationed in the Enlightenment Gallery with a selection of items that have been reported as potential Treasure and which have come to the museum for analysis and/or valuation. Hilary Orange took charge of the table and chose an array of objects designed to engage visitors with the concept of ‘Treasure’ and the intricacies of its definition. Among the items was a silver finger-ring NARC-EC8B41 from Northamptonshire, two of the largest Iron Age ingots from this case IOW-EAAFE2 on the Isle of Wight, and three Bronze Age palstaves from this hoard HAMP-4DE734 in Hampshire. Hilary and Caroline Lyons had also created a collage of press reports about finds of Treasure, and images of treasure items that had been valued, and used these to decorate the stand. The overall effect was to ensure that a constant stream of curious Friends visited with the team for over two and a half hours.

Caroline Lyons, Caroline Barton, Janina Parol and myself (Ian Richardson) also conducted gallery talks throughout the evening, taking visitors through the British Museum’s European Galleries in order to highlight a few of the more prominent cases of Treasure that the British Museum has acquired, both under the old law of Treasure Trove and under the ‘new’ Treasure Act. We also included as a point-of-interest the case in the Early Medieval gallery currently occupied by the Frome Hoard and the Hackney Hoard, and were able to use that to explain more fully about the logistics behind the Treasure Act, and that most things which come to the BM under the Act are in fact acquired by local museums. Sue Brunning, project curator in the Department of Prehistory and Europe, was at the same time drawing large crowds to her gallery talks about Sutton Hoo.

Meanwhile, in the depths of the Clore Centre, below the Great Court, Dan Pett used an internet connection to give live demonstrations of the PAS Database. This generated intense interest from some of the guests and Dan found himself the object of much attention through the evening. In the same part of the museum, Roger Bland and Sam Moorhead packed the largest lecture theatre with an enthralled audience as they detailed the history of the discovery, excavation, cataloguing and acquisition of the Frome Hoard.

In the Great Court itself, curious Friends were given insight into the scientific aspect of Treasure by Duncan Hook and Sue LaNiece of CSR. With their portable XRF machine, they demonstrated how metallic items can be tested for gold or silver content without having to incurring any physical damage at all. The original plan was for the Treasure Team to bring over one of the items it had on display, a replica Viking comb from Devon that was originally believed to be silver until analysis showed it to be made of modern pewter, in order that Sue and Duncan could show the visitors an ‘authentic’ case. However the volume of patrons who patrolled the Treasure desk made escape impossible!

Paula Carter, the co-ordinator of Members Open Evenings said:

It was a very busy evening and the Members were clearly very much engaged in the whole of the evening’s programme, there was a wonderful atmosphere and I heard lots of excited discussions amongst members and they compared notes on what they had seen so far

What I saw certainly reinforced that. Walking through the Great Court at the end of the evening two gentlemen in important looking suits were conversing together as they strode towards the exit.

‘I had no idea Britain had its own emperor,’ said one.

‘No, no, neither did I,’ returned his companion. ‘Fascinating’.

Whether they owe their newfound knowledge to Roger and Sam, or to the fevered cramming of an Assistant Treasure Registrar, proudly regaling the history of Carausius and the gold coin DENO-651C91 in our galleries, remains unknown.

Newark Torc on Display at the British Museum

Newark and Sherwood District Council have agreed to loan the Newark Torc to the British Museum, where it is now on display.

The Department of Prehistory & Europe has arranged a case in the Britain and Europe (800BC – AD43) gallery to display the Newark Torc alongside the British Museum’s own ‘Sedgeford Torc’, found in 1965. Both torcs date to the pre-Roman Iron Age and are composed of twisted gold wire strands attached to hollow terminals, embellished with ‘La Tene’ decoration. This design allowed for a natural flex in the band to accommodate the twisting action necessary to slip the decoration around the wearer’s neck.

The pairing of the torcs from Newark and Sedgeford enables visitors to appreciate both the magnificence of a complete example and the complex craftsmanship behind its construction, for historic damage to the Sedgeford Torc has created the effect of an exploded schematic and shows clearly the object’s separate components. The larger section of the torc has been slightly unwound and makes it easier to see the technique involved in braiding the gold wires; similarly, the dislocated terminal (found separately, in 2004 by the Sedgeford Historical Archaeology Research Project) allows visitors to see the way that the wires were joined together.

The Newark Torc was found in April 2005 and declared Treasure in May of that year. Subsequently acquired by Newark and Sherwood District Council, it is awaiting the creation of a suitable display space in the region. In the meantime, the exhibit at the British Museum assumes a place across the corridor from a larger showcase displaying the Great Torc from Snettisham and an assortment of torcs of different styles. As such, the Newark Torc nicely complements the BM’s Iron Age collection, and it is sure to have an even more significant impact when it goes home to Nottinghamshire.

Treasure Annual Report 2008

Today marked the launch of the official Treasure Annual Report 2008, listing all of the cases of Treasure reported between 1 January and 31 December 2008. Astute observers will note the vast difference in appearance and content between this and recent reports; absent are colour photographs and detailed description of select cases, and the report does not include items reported to the PAS that were not considered under the Treasure Act. Legislation does not allow for a combined Portable Antiquities &Treasure Annual Report to be officially laid before Parliament and so the 2008 incarnation of that report (which is forthcoming) will have to be launched separately. Under the circumstances, it was decided to produce the concise report launched today as an interim measure.

This short document is, however, by no means something to be overlooked. Since 2005/2006, we have endeavoured to ensure that a PAS Database record has been created for each find of reported Treasure, and those associated reference numbers have appeared alongside the Treasure case numbers in those reports. In the Treasure Report 2008, one can likewise refer to the database numbers for all of the listed cases. Similarly, with the new database, Dan Pett has created a separate field for Treasure case numbers, so it is possible to search for cases with only this information to hand.

On the www.finds.org.uk site, if one clicks on the ‘Database’ tab at the top of the page, and then clicks on ‘Search database’ tab at the left, a cascading menu allows for the choice of ‘Advanced Search’. Following that link will allow for the user to tick a box labelled ‘Treasure find:’ and to input a ‘Treasure ID number’. If one inputs, for example, the number ‘2008 T200’, a database entry for that case (an Early Medieval hooked tag) is returned.

The Finds Liaison Officers, Treasure Team, and several hard working volunteers have worked to update these records as thoroughly as possible with photographs, disposition information, and 4-figure findspot information. They have also ‘promoted’ as many of these records as possible to ensure that members of the public,and not just academics, have easy access to this information. The functionality built into the website, enabling reports to be printed, photos to be zoomed in on, and information to be sorted according to a variety of criteria, means that the presentation of the Treasure report in this format is useful and adaptable.

I’d like to congratulate my colleagues on the Treasure Team, Caroline Barton, Caroline Lyons, Hilary Orange and Janina Parol on the launch of this report; to extend hearty thanks to our volunteers Siorna McFarlane and Emma Traherne and the FLOs for their untiring work on these database records, and thank Dan Pett for designing such a comprehensive and easy-to-use interface. To my mind, the integration of the database with the Treasure records proves further the degree to which the work of the PAS is crucial to the successful administration of the Treasure Act. Today’s news, that the BM will assume authority of the PAS, seems a natural transformation that will hopefully ensure the Scheme’s continued success and even greater collaboration in the administration of Treasure cases. Lastly, congratulations to Michael Lewis, the editor of this report and the forthcoming combined report, for all his work in ensuring these documents come to fruition.