An amazing story from Britain: how dedication, self-confidence and a little luck can lead the average treasure hunter to national fame. And to force historians to rewrite textbooks.
Back in 2016, 55-year-old Andy Hall discovered a 1300-year-old coin. At the same time, the find was at a depth of only 10 cm, so even the seeker himself at first thought that this was some kind of modern fake or one of the souvenirs of fantasy lovers. Despite the fact that 95% of the coin was made of silver - a rarity for our days, but the norm for the 700s.
What confused everyone?
The controversy arose due to the fact that the coin depicts the face of the Saxon king Lyuke of Mercia, who ruled for only one year from 826 to 827. AD This little-known Saxon king Louis, who ruled the kingdom of which London was a part at the time. Mr. Hall said that he only figured out with the help of the Internet who is depicted on the coin. And he sent her to a museum at Cambridge so that local experts would analyze the find. They could not give an unambiguous answer regarding the authenticity, and for three years different scholars argued about whether the coin was real.
After all, it was previously believed that as early as 825 A. D. after the Battle of Ellendun London fell to King Eckberht of Wessex. However, the find changes the previous historical facts. It turned out that London did not leave anywhere and Ludica ruled in it for the next two years. To prove the value of the coin, Hall even paid £ 300 for a special analysis of its composition. It helped, and now the price of the find at the auction can be up to 15 thousand pounds (1,226,704 rubles).
The auction is scheduled to take place on March 10. Hall has already promised to split the proceeds from the sale with the owner of the land on which he discovered the coin.