23. An Amateur Treasure Hunter
We don’t often regard hobbyist treasure hunters’ findings as serious and archaeologists surely agree with this. However, Jason Massey is part of the group called Detecting for Veterans. Together with other members, he’s found precious artifacts!
Jason Massey is a pest control officer from the United Kingdom. He’s not a stranger to cameras, since the group he’s part of had made some awesome finds. But he had no idea that returning to an old site would end with the discovery of his life.
22. Finding a Roman Grave
One year before making the greatest discovery, he and Kevin Minto who is also one of a team of detectorists found Roman coins:
“I hit two Roman coins, then one to the left, right and above…then 18 and within 20 mins we were in the 50s,” said Minto. It was time to go back there and find something bigger!
21. The Roman Hoard
Considering the group of detectorists found Roman coins and several rings, Massey couldn’t wait to go back and find some other artifacts. on his Twitter account, he wrote:
“Only 3 weeks to go until we return to the farm we found a Roman Hoard and Rare Roman lead coffin.”
20. Uncovering Artifacts in Crewkerne
This was the Roman lead coffin the group found. Massey was getting ready for the trip back at the lucky site. Then he sees something golden shining in the mud! Wait until you see how precious the artifact is!
19. Roman Coins and Other Finds
This amateur treasure hunter was spending his afternoon with his metal detector when his gadget began beeping. He knew that something else should be hidden at the Roman Hoard site, but didn’t think he’d find this golden ring!
18. Shinning in the Mud
Jason was scanning the area of Crewkerne hoping to find something of value. He had almost lost all hope when something strange happened. His metal detector started beeping and he began digging. Something shone in the mud…
17. His Metal Detector Started Beeping
Without a warning, Jason’s metal detector started beeping uncontrollably! It was obvious that he’d found something interesting and he immediately started digging. He never expected to find this, even in his wildest dreams!
16. A Strange Piece Of Jewellery
Jason was expecting to find a plain piece of metal but what he found was jaw-dropping! To his surprise, he didn’t discover a gold coin! It was a strange piece of jewelry that looked like a ring. But what exactly was it?
15. It Was Gold, He Knew It
Jason immediately stopped and yelled at his other colleagues to come see what he found. He was told that this strange ring was indeed gold. But something still wasn’t right… Wait until you see what it represents!
14. Further Investigation
Jason’s instinct didn’t let him stop there and soon he was in contact with an archaeologist who was interested in examining his finding. The two men were about to have the surprise of their lives! Click next to see why!
13. A Roman Ring
Jason’s mind was blown when the archaeologist told him that his finding would most likely end up in a museum! It appears that Jason had just made a stunning discovery that would be widely discussed! But why such a hassle?
12. An Important Ring
The archaeologist told Jason that the ring that he’d found had all the characteristics of a piece of jewelry that someone of high status would wear in ancient Rome. He told him that almost certainly this ring belonged to someone who played a lead role in the Roman empire’s history! Jason couldn’t believe his eyes!
11. National Heritage
Soon, there was a committee appointed to investigate Jason’s case and Jason was surprised to see his precious finding becoming a piece of his country’s national heritage! What was more important was that the site where he found the ring and coins was the place where a “very high status Roman villa” was once built. Here’s more about it…
10. In The Museum
The ring is now carefully taken care by experts in London and more specifically in the British Museum. Until this day, they haven’t found to whom exactly this ring belonged too but it is expected that this mystery will be solved soon. What experts are sure is that this ring was most probably made for someone important between the years 200 to 300 AD. Jason desperately wanted to find out the real value of his treasure
9. A Veteran
Jason Massey served in the British armed forces at the end of the 20th century. Later he joined the “Detecting for Veterans” group that inspired him to start searching for things in his free time.
8. The Location
The ring was found near a site that an ancient roman villa was most probably built there. Jason didn’t know this while scanning the area but still managed to make this important discovery!
7. Determining Its Value
Jason desperately wanted to learn the true value of his finding but this is still up to this day a difficult task as there is no precedent of such a finding in the UK.
‘We have no idea how much the ring is worth – there is nothing like it in the UK,’ he said.
6. Profits
Jason will most likely share 50% of the profits that his newly discovered treasure will generate with the lucky landowner where the ring was found. But both of them are still waiting for the British Museum researching to determine its exact value.
5. Detecting For Veterans
The group Detecting for Veterans continues to discover more precious items dating back to the roman times. They found over 60 Roman coins, mostly silver but also gold and bronze.
4. Bronze, Silver, Gold
Silver and bronze findings are more common in the area because gold was extremely rare and it was owned only by the extremely rich. That’s why the archaeologist that Jason run to when uncovering the ring was immediately amazed by the discovery.
3. What Is On The Ring?
What is depicted on the ring is also quite interesting. It appears that the ring features the Roman goddess of Victory who is usually depicted riding her chariot that is being pulled by horses.
2. Jason Continues To Search For More Ancient Items
Even though one could easily assume that Jason would retire from treasure hunting, it seems that this finding made him more ambitious and optimistic and he states that he’s sure that he will be discovering something just as important soon!
1. An Amazing Discovery
Jason made a significant discovery that amazed archaeologists with his cheap metal detector. This proves that the only thing an aspiring treasure hunter needs is a metal detector, time and persistence!