A rare haul of Iron Age jewelry discovered by an amateur treasure hunter is being unveiled by the Museum of Scotland.
The find of four gold torcs, or necklaces, was unearthed on private land in Stirlingshire in September. They were discovered by David Booth, a chief game warden at Blair Drummond Safari Park, who had just taken up the hobby.
The necklaces, which date from between 300BC and 100BC, are thought to be worth in the region of $1.65 million.
Quite how well Mr Booth will be rewarded has yet to be decided. Under Scots law, the Crown has the right to claim any find, with any payments made at their discretion. However, it is thought he could receive somewhere in the region of a six-figure sum.
The 35-year-old had only taken up the hobby five days before and this was his first outing with the newly bought metal detector.
"I found it by accident," he said. "I had a field in mind, so set off there. I walked seven steps from where I parked my jeep and that's when I discovered them. It was just sheer luck.
"I had used the metal detector around the house to practise for a few days, but this was the first time I'd taken it out," Booth explained.
"When I discovered the jewelry, I thought it might be significant but I didn't know for sure until I looked on the Internet and saw similar torcs. I immediately emailed a picture of them to the museum."
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,571985,00.html?test=latestnews
The find of four gold torcs, or necklaces, was unearthed on private land in Stirlingshire in September. They were discovered by David Booth, a chief game warden at Blair Drummond Safari Park, who had just taken up the hobby.
The necklaces, which date from between 300BC and 100BC, are thought to be worth in the region of $1.65 million.
Quite how well Mr Booth will be rewarded has yet to be decided. Under Scots law, the Crown has the right to claim any find, with any payments made at their discretion. However, it is thought he could receive somewhere in the region of a six-figure sum.
The 35-year-old had only taken up the hobby five days before and this was his first outing with the newly bought metal detector.
"I found it by accident," he said. "I had a field in mind, so set off there. I walked seven steps from where I parked my jeep and that's when I discovered them. It was just sheer luck.
"I had used the metal detector around the house to practise for a few days, but this was the first time I'd taken it out," Booth explained.
"When I discovered the jewelry, I thought it might be significant but I didn't know for sure until I looked on the Internet and saw similar torcs. I immediately emailed a picture of them to the museum."
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,571985,00.html?test=latestnews
