The Wylye Hoard is a hoard of

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...

jewellery, discovered by

metal detector A metal detector is an instrument that detects the nearby presence of metal. Metal detectors are useful for finding metal objects on the surface, underground, and under water. The unit itself, consist of a control box, and an adjustable shaft, ...

ists in a cultivated field, north-east of the village of

Wylye, Wiltshire Wylye () is a village and civil parish on the River Wylye in Wiltshire, England. The village is about northwest of Salisbury and a similar distance southeast of Warminster. The parish extends north and south of the river, and includes the ha ...

, England, in 2012. In February 2014, it was declared treasure, under the terms of the

Treasure Act 1996 The Treasure Act 1996 is a UK Act of Parliament, defining which objects are classified as treasure, legally obliging the finder to report their find. Provisions The Act is designed to deal with finds of treasure in England, Wales and Northern Ire ...

Discovery

Two members of the "West London Archaeological Searchers", a metal-detecting group, Stuart Gullick and Michael Barker, found the hoard on 4 November 2012. The site was a hilltop location, close to the

River Wylye The River Wylye ( ) is a chalk stream in the south of England, with clear water flowing over gravel. It is popular with anglers for fly fishing. A half-mile stretch of the river and three lakes in Warminster are a local nature reserve. Cour ...

This article contains quotations from this source, which is available under th
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)
license.

Composition

The find consists of 41 copper alloy objects split across two deposits or concentrations of finds, with a small number of finds found a short distance away. All the objects are of a similar typo-chronology and are likely to represent a single hoard comprising 31 'ornaments', 8 'tools' and 4 'other' or unidentified objects. The artefacts were recovered by the finders from two deposits in close proximity (c.2-3m apart), with two pits subsequently identified by a local amateur archaeology group (the Wiltshire Archaeology Field Group) on 10 November 2012. There was, however, no opportunity to independently date the pit cuts. The first deposit appears to have been a closed deposit, with the finders noting that the torcs were 'stacked' on top of one another within the pit (verbal communication). The second deposit is likely to have been disturbed by agricultural operations as the objects were dispersed across a small area.

Inquest

An inquest was held by the Salisbury coroner in February 2014 at which the hoard was declared to be treasure. After valuation by the

Treasure Valuation Committee The Treasure Valuation Committee (TVC) is an advisory non-departmental public body of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) based in London, which offers expert advice to the government on items of declared treasure in England, Wale ...

, the hoard was acquired by Salisbury & South Wiltshire Museum (since renamed

The Salisbury Museum The Salisbury Museum (previously The Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum) is a museum in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England. It houses one of the best collections relating to Stonehenge and local archaeology. The museum is housed in The King's H ...

Excavation

An archaeological excavation of the site was subsequently undertaken by the Wiltshire Archaeology Field Group. No further objects were found.

References

External links

{{Commons category
Official find record

3D renderings
Archaeological sites in Wiltshire 2012 archaeological discoveries 2009 archaeological discoveries Copper objects Metal detecting finds in England Bronze Age England Bronze Age art Ancient art in metal