52,503 Roman coins found by Metal detector fan Dave Crisp declared a UK National Treasure. A coroner ruled Dave's remarkable discovery was treasure trove, meaning it belongs to the Crown but he will be rewarded with its value. It is thought to be worth up to £1million. Crisp, from Wiltshire, found the coins, dating from the 3rd Century AD, in April buried near Frome. The NHS chef, 63, stumbled on the silver and bronze cash in a giant ceramic pot which was buried underground 1,800 years ago.
Photo by Mirror.co.uk: Dave Crisp and his find treasure.It is Britain's biggest discovery of Roman coins and dates back to forgotten emperor Carausius who ruled here from AD286 to AD293. Carausius was the first Roman emperor to strike coins in Britain. One coin boasted a line from Latin poet Virgil. . Five of the Carausius coins are solid silver, the first such pure coins minted anywhere in the Roman empire in over 150 years. A selection of the Frome coins is to go on display at the British Museum from July 22 until mid August.
Grandad-of-three Dave said: "I'm over the moon. The money doesn't matter.
Obviously it's nice, but the significant thing for me is I'm the person who made the biggest discovery of Roman coins ever found in Britain."
Recalling the moment his metal detector emitted a "funny signal" before his field find, he revealed: "I sat down and started to dig around and pulled a bit of clay which was attached to a pot.
"At first I found a coin, then another, then another. Then I realised what I had stumbled across and I literally stood up and shouted 'I've found a haul'." It will now be valued by independent experts and he will split the spoils with landowner Geoff Sheppard, 57.
Dairy farmer Geoff said: "It's a complete shock. I can't believe what was found."
Dave had been metal detecting for 22 years when he dug up the treasure weighing 25 stone in Frome, Somerset, in April.
The coins were declared property of the Crown at East Somerset coroner's court in Frome. Under the 1996 Treasure Act, anyone who finds buried coins has to declare them to the coroner within two weeks. The value of the haul will be set by the Treasure Valuation Committee. Some coins are on show at the British Museum. They are likely to be bought by the Museum of Somerset, which reopens next year.
Dave, of Devizes, Wiltshire, added: "I'll keep working until I retire next year. I'll definitely continue with my hobby - you don't just stop a hobby. People often compare metal detecting to trainspotting or say it's a geeky - well, it just goes to show."
Roger Bland, of the British Museum, told the hearing: "Carausius is not well known, he was a Roman commander who set himself up as emperor in Britain. To find such a big group of his coins will give us a lot of information about this episode in our nation's history, which is not well understood."
Source: Mirror.co.uk
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