A metal-detector enthusiast who unearthed the 2,000-year-old Newark torc has struck lucky for a second time.
Mr Maurice Richardson with a coin that was among his latest finds in a field near Newark. (130710AM1-17)
Mr Maurice Richardson has found about 200 pieces dating back to medieval, Saxon and Roman times in a field around two miles from Newark.
He has two theories on the items — the first that they may be from a long-lost hoard and the second that they may have been offerings thrown into a long-forgotten spring.
He estimates that, at a few hundred pounds, the collection will be worth a fraction of the £175,000 he received after the torc, an Iron Age necklace, was determined to be treasure trove in February, 2005.
Mr Richardson, 61, of Newark, will take his collection to Millgate Museum tomorrow so it can be assessed by a finds liaison officer from Nottinghamshire County Council.
He expects it to be ultimately declared treasure trove too, and hopes it will be bought by Newark and Sherwood District Council’s museums service and possibly exhibited alongside the torc if a new town museum is created on Appletongate.
In the collection are 110 copper and 11 silver Roman coins from the dynasties of various emperors including Constantine, 13 brooches, some disc brooches still with their pins intact, pottery, and oyster shells (oysters were a staple food at the time).
There are significant individual items such as an intricately-carved knife or spoon handle featuring a woman and child, plus a tiny pair of tweezers, and a Roman swastika brooch.
Mr Richardson said he had almost given up on the site but decided to probe one remaining patch before leaving.
His first find was near what looked to be an old bridleway with a crossroads that led nowhere. He made further finds on subsequent trips.
Mr Richardson hopes an archaeological dig will take place if the site is thought to be that of a spring — offerings would indicate it was a healing spring.
Since finding the torc, Mr Richardson has replaced the £70 detector he began his hobby with. He has upgraded to one that cost £1,200 and has a computer that judges depth and can identify types of metals beneath the surface.
If the collection is declared treasure trove, Mr Richardson will receive half its value with the rest going to the landowner, as happened with the torc.
It is hoped the torc, owned by the district council, will become the centrepiece at a museum planned for the Old Magnus Buildings and Tudor Hall, in what used to be Newark Museum, on Appletongate.
The council is seeking Lottery money for the project.
