When Kevin Minto, a lorry driver, former soldier and keen metal detectorist, came upon something glinting in a Somerset field, he thought at first it was a coin – potentially quite interesting, probably not amazing. But the object turned out to be extraordinary: a gold Roman ring, unusually large and exquisitely crafted, set with a finely engraved gemstone depicting the goddess Victoria driving a two-horse chariot.[...] One of the boys I was with was screaming: ‘We’re rich, we’re rich.’”They had returned to a productive site where coins had previously been found (not considered or reported as a hoard at the time, then left alone).
Minto first found Roman coins at the site near Ilminster in 2017. He kept returning and finding more coins scattered over a wide area, probably by ploughs. “The coins were all over the place,” he said. On another occasion he found a lead-lined coffin. Then in 2018, the ring was discovered. “The money was only paid out a couple of months ago, so it’s taken a long time,” he said. There was a complication, too, because the ring was found on the day of a military veterans’ detecting rally – and there was a dispute about who was entitled to the proceeds. “I’m glad it’s all finished now,” he said.And that's as far as this reporter takes the story. It seems to me, reading between the lines there isa LOT more he could have done with it, questions to ask. But then dumbdown suits everybody better, the paper has a gap-filler feel-good (ordinary bloke strikes it lucky) story. Win-win as they say, why bother with details and perspective?
It's all very similar to the way these things are now always reported and done. It's just socially acceptable and now there seem to be fewer objections from within pro archaeology or the wider public with an interest in heritage (who now just seem to accept the news reports without question). Shame on the lot of you.
Hat tip Dave Coward
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