Finds
Our Finds pages contain a selection of some of the interesting things that our club members have found.
They are organized into the historical periods listed below. Please click the heading to see some of our selected finds for that historical period.
Stone Age, pre 2600BC
The Neolithic people mainly used stone for tools and weapons. Towards the end of the stone age there was a limited use of pure gold, silver and copper. These metals were too soft to make useful or durable tools but they were used for decorative and ceremonial items. Category included here for completeness.
The Sumerians discovered that bronze, a copper and tin alloy, could be used to make tools and weapons that were much stronger than stone. Bronze is metal that needs to be cast using a mold.
The Celts started to use iron, a much stronger metal than bronze, which was superior for making tools and weapons. Iron is forged rather than cast. The Celts also invented the first coins used in the UK, these were generally made from Gold, Silver and Bronze.
The Romans found Britain to be rich in metal resources such as copper, gold, iron, silver, lead, tin. The Romans made many metal alloys such as pewter and brass. The Romans also established standardised coinage in Britain made from Gold, Silver, Brass, and Copper alloy.
The Early Anglo-Saxons also used lead, gold, silver, tin and copper-alloys, with various tools being required for the manufacture of tools, weapons, vessels and dress accessories using these metals. Apart from iron and bronze, both the Saxons and Vikings made use of other metals, mainly for jewellery. The most widely used of those used were silver, pewter and gold. Silver was a popular metal for jewellery such as brooches, rings, strap ends, buckles, mounts for drinking horns and, of course, for coinage.
The medieval middle ages span the many famous events in UK history such the Normal Conquest, the Civil War, the Magna Carta, and Columbus's discovery the Americas.
People of the medieval world, in many ways, relied on metal to live. Most people during the Middle Ages used everyday tools made of metal, and knights and soldiers relied on well-crafted metal weapons and armor. The blacksmith had a vital role during this age, as he held responsibility for turning basic materials into what many people needed to survive.
Post medieval period spans the history of the Tudors, Stuarts, Georgians, and finally the Victorians.
The Great Debasement (1544–1551) was a currency debasement policy introduced in 1544 England under the order of Henry VIII which saw the amount of precious metal in gold and silver coins reduced and in some cases replaced entirely with cheaper base metals such as copper. Debasement policy continued under Edward VI, with silver content dropping to only 25% in mid 16th century. Debasement was revoked in 1551 and silver fineness restored to 92.5%.
Up to this point in history coins were made by a hammering metal between two dies, hence called hammered coins. In late 16th century, Elizabeth I introduced milled coinage and had all circulating hammered coins withdrawn from circulation and melted down.
First World War, Interwar, Second World War, Post-war, New Elizabethan, New Carolean
The First World War (1914-18) forced Britain to export much of its gold and silver reserves to the US as repayment for war loans, and Britain reduced the fineness of its silver coinage from the 0.925 sterling standard to 0.500 or 50% in 1920. As a result of the economic strain of fighting yet another major war (Second World War, 1939-45), Britain was forced to undergo one last final debasement of its circulating coinage, when silver was replaced entirely by cupro-nickel in 1947.