An inquest in North Yorkshire has found a Medieval gold ring found by a metal detectorist to be treasure (Richard Harris, '
Treasure found at sites in Escrick and Towton near York', York Press 13th October 2010). Coroner Rob Turnbull was also told about the circumstances of discovery of 10th/11th century AD gold ring set with a sapphire and red glass dug up from a field just outside Escrick. It was discovered by Michael Greenhorn of Clifton Moor (13 km away and the other side of York). He is a member of York and District Metal Detecting Club and found the ring "
on a club outing" where "
about 20 enthusiasts were sweeping a field with the permission of the farmer". In other words a commercial rally. The ring is in the BM being evaluated by the TVC:
"Mr Greenhorn believes it is worth between £6,000 and £10,000. However, the price of an object depends on how much someone is willing to pay for it, so it could be worth much more".
Which is why many Treasure seekers would prefer what they find to go to auction like the Crosby Garrett helmet.
We are told by the journalist that "
Mr Greenhorn has been a metal-detector enthusiast (sic)
for more than 20 years but this is easily the most expensive item he has found", but how many items and of what types has he removed from the archaeological record over those two decades (spanning the period from before the 1996 Treasure Act)? How many PAS-reportable artefacts does the typical artefact hunter find a year?
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