Rare coin with royal link is found in a drain and will sell for a huge amount
A RARE gold coin dating back almost 700 years is set to fetch an eye-watering sum after being found in a field drain.
The incredible 14th century artefact was discovered along with a trove of priceless pieces in East Raynham, Norfolk.
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It was excavated more than 100 years ago in 1911, but will now go under the hammer at Spink & Son auction house next month.
Auctioneer Gregory Edmund said: ‘The glitter of gold is as attractive to modern eyes as it was to medieval kings.
“That this remarkably preserved and high-quality medieval coin lay in a low field drain for centuries before coming to light is certainly very romantic.”
The incredible collection, which dates back to the reign of King Edward III, was originally rejected by the British Museum.
This meant that the treasure was open to bidders who wanted to pay privately to own it.
They were made between 1327 and 1377 and show the design of King Edward III on a warship with a mighty sword and shield.
It shows the defeat of the French during the Battle of Sluis in 1340.
The medieval coin has an inscription that reads: “King of England, by the grace of God, and Lord of Ireland and Aquitaine”.
It is now on the market, after the previous owner acquired the artifact in 1970.
And it will fetch as much as £8,000 at auction.
The coin will be offered for sale at the Spinks auction in London on April 4.
It comes as a metal detectorist thought he had found a “lucky penny” and was stunned when he unearthed a haul worth £200,000.
Tony House came across a single coin, but instinct told him to keep digging – and he discovered another 570 cents.
A fellow detectorist, Jon Randle, found a hoard of 400-year-old silver coins during his second foray.
The aspiring metal detector had only unearthed rusty nails and a butter knife before discovering the fortune.
The loot is believed to have been buried during the civil war of 1642-1651 and contains money from the reigns of Charles I, James I, Elizabeth I and Mary I.
The 27-year-old from Hinckley, Leics, reported the discovery in Coventry as a treasure.
Meanwhile, another novice treasure hunter managed to find one of the largest quantities of pre-Viking gold ever found.
The vast fortune – including gold medallions the size of saucers – remained hidden for 1,500 years until Ole Ginnerup Schytz found it by “pure luck”.
Ole had only been out for a few hours when he heard his gadget beeping in a field and unearthed 22 precious gold objects weighing almost 1 kg (2.2 lbs).
Archaeologists excavated the surrounding site and discovered that the treasure had been buried under a longhouse by a clan chief in the sixth century
Experts say it is one of the largest and most important finds in Danish history.