Anglo Saxon Buckles

The first discovery was made by a metal detectorist, who had permission to scan the land.

Following the discovery three years ago, English Heritage immediately recognised the exceptional significance of the finds and provided emergency funding at the start of the dig together with continued expert advice, support and funding for the research and preservation of the Staffordshire Hoard. Archaeologists working with Staffordshire County Council later carried out the excavation of the field and discovered the largest ever find of Anglo Saxon gold and silver metal work from this country.

In total the hoard included over 5kg of gold, 1.5kg of silver and thousands of small garnets, They include a bishop’s pectoral cross, a large folded cross, a helmet cheek piece, a filigree seahorse and numerous sword fittings including hilt plates and pommel caps. The pieces appear to date from the seventh century, although there is some debate among experts as to when the hoard first entered the ground. The dig was closed when archaeologists were confident they had retrieved everything that was recoverable at the time.
Last month, a team of archaeologists and experienced metal detectorists from Archaeology Warwickshire returned to the field when it was ploughed and recovered further material. These are currently being examined and x-rayed at a specialist archives laboratory.
After the Staffordshire Hoard was declared treasure a huge fundraising campaign was launched to bring the treasure back to the West Midlands.