Britain's Secret Treasures

by Mary-Ann Ochota

  Finds of possible trench and prisoner art by members of the public aren’t always reported, as they’re relatively modern objects. But they are an excellent way to help build our knowledge of these intriguing military sites. Anyone who has any finds like this is encouraged to register them with their local Finds Liaison Officer – together they tell the compelling story of our wartime ‘guests’.

  See also:

  Fort George Toy Soldiers

  Hackney WWII Hoard

  Langstone Tankard

  A four-pint tankard dropped in a bog

  Date: 1–150AD Late Iron Age or Early Roman

  Where, when and how found: Langstone, Newport, Wales; 2007; metal detecting

  Finder: Craig Mills

  Where is it now? Amgueddfa Cymru, National Museum Wales, Cardiff (not currently on display)

  www.museumwales.ac.uk

  Also visit: National Roman Legion Museum, Caerleon

  www.museumwales.ac.uk

  This complete wooden tankard was discovered in a peaty layer of a low-lying, waterlogged field on the outskirts of Newport. It holds almost four pints of liquid and was used by our ancestors almost 2,000 years ago, for communal drinking ceremonies using beer and cider. It was deposited at the edge of a bog between 1 and 150AD, possibly around the time of the Roman invasion of South Wales in 47AD. It appears to be a ritual offering.

  Made from six strips (or ‘staves’) of yew wood fitted into a circular base, with undecorated copper alloy bands and a simple handle, it’s a large but relatively simple object. What makes it an extraordinary treasure is that the organic component, the wood, has survived for twenty centuries.

  Conservation

  Normally the only surviving parts of early tankards are the handles, as they’re made of solid, chunky metal, but the Langstone tankard is complete. The wood survived this long because the bog it was deposited in kept it waterlogged and without oxygen. If it had been exposed to the air, it would have rotted away a long time ago. Only six complete tankards have ever been found in Britain and Ireland.

  The Langstone Tankard was discovered by metal detectorist Craig Mills a few days before Christmas in 2007. When Mark Lewis, the curator at the National Roman Legion Museum at Caerleon saw it, he immediately realised how old and how rare it was. He knew that they would need to act quickly in order to prevent the fragile ancient wood from drying out and disintegrating.

  The tankard was taken to the National Museum Wales, Cardiff, where specialist conservators got to work. They soaked the vessel in alcohol to remove and replace the water in the wood cells, then replaced the alcohol with a volatile compound which evaporated and allowed the organic material to dry without it cracking further or buckling away from the metal fittings. The painstaking work paid off – the Langstone Tankard is now stable and preserved for research and display.

  And it’s given us some fascinating insights into life in south Wales in the 1st century AD.

  Drinking in Iron Age Britain

  To drink from such a big tankard when it was full, you’d have to hold it with two hands rather than by the handle. It’s probable that it would have been passed round a group during feasts or ritual events. Each person could take a swig, then pass it on.

  Other complete tankards have been found in the south and west of England and Wales and handles and metal bands have been found across Britain, from Orkney to Dorset. The culture for ‘competitive feasting’ existed across Europe too, where chiefs and nobles would demonstrate their wealth and power by hosting over-the-top feasting and drinking events. Drinking wasn’t just for fun, it was an important political and social tool – in many ways that still resonate today. Alcohol could show friendship, demonstrate generosity and mark important occasions.

  Offerings and rituals

  A few metres from where the tankard was found, Craig Mills picked up another metal detector signal that identified two decorated bronze bowls and a strainer with traditional ‘Celtic’ art patterns. They also appear to be linked to ceremonial drinking and drink preparation, and it’s possible the strainer was used to remove sediment from wine ready for drinking.

  Archaeologists excavated two ‘test pits’, small trenches at the find site, to find out about the nature of the soil and landscape, and they discovered that both the hoard of bowls and the tankard had been carefully placed (rather than thrown) at the edge of a shallow lake, or a bog with standing water.

  There is a vast body of evidence that shows that Iron Age people across north Europe made offerings to their gods in watery places like lakes, rivers and bogs. The favourite sites for these ritual activities are ‘liminal’ areas – places which are on the boundaries of wet and dry, between cultivated and wild land – and it’s thought that these ‘edgy’ areas might have been where the spirits, ancestors or gods were closest to the living world.

  It’s not certain, but shellfish and fish don’t seem to have been caught or eaten in this period, even amongst coastal communities. This behaviour could also be linked to the idea that water was the domain of the dead, the spirits or the ancestors. Trade networks reveal that people were clearly comfortable using boats along the coast and for deep sea voyages, but there’s very little evidence of them eating marine resources.

  The bowl hoard wasn’t deposited at precisely the same time as the tankard. The bowls were probably made between 25 and 60AD and buried between 50 and 75AD. Both the bowls and the tankard fit the pattern of ‘sacrificing’ drinking tools at this particular watery place. The big question is ‘why?’

  A community in crisis?

  We don’t know exactly whether the tankard is a Late Iron Age or very Early Roman artefact. There’s evidence from the site for both earlier Iron Age activity as well as later Roman activity. The two normal ways of dating an object like this don’t help either – the first is based on the style of the tankard, but close analysis shows that the handle might be a later replacement to an earlier vessel, and the bands and woodwork aren’t of any particular dateable type. The other way would be to radiocarbon date the wood. Yew wood grows so slowly, though, that yew trees felled for their timber can be hundreds of years old. Radiocarbon dating could give a misleadingly early date – pinning down the date the tree was growing, but not when the tankard was made and used.

  The Roman Emperor Claudius successfully invaded Britain in 43AD, and his troops reached Wales by 47AD. They were quickly met with fierce and prolonged opposition from the Silures tribe who lived across what is now south Wales. The Roman Army waged war against the Welsh native guerrilla forces for more than thirty years, finally gaining a stronghold across the region.

  The Langstone find site is less than 5km from Isca. It’s possible that the tankard and the bowls were both offerings to the gods at a particularly crucial time in the battle against Rome.

  TO MAKE IRON AGE BEER

  (based loosely on excavation results from the Hochdorf Iron Age site, Germany)

  • Soak your barley in a ditch or pit until it sprouts.

  • Light a fire at the edge of the ditch, allowing the heat and smoke to add flavour and colour to the grain.

  • Bacteria will begin to grow, like in a sourdough bread, to give a tangy note.

  • Drop heated stones into your grain mix until it boils, then strain and flavour the liquid with mugwort. Add henbane to make the drink more intoxicating.

  • Fermentation can be started with honey or fruit, or the naturally-occuring bacteria in the air.

  • Once fermentation is complete, allow the thick sediments to settle, pour into giant tankards, and share with your friends.

  • You might like to try your Iron Age beer with a suitable feast, including smoked, salted, roasted or boiled meats (favourites are beef, pork or mutton, house specials include goose and dog), barley and wheat bread, cabbage, parsnips, and a selection of bean stews and porridge. Locally sourced honey and seasonal fruits are available – including apples, pears, cherries and berries. If a cow has just had a calf, you mig
ht like a little cheese to finish off.

  See also:

  Blair Drummond Torc Hoard

  Ringlemere Cup

  Hallaton Treasure

  Pitminster Toy Cannon

  A tiny toy war machine

  Date: 1700–1750, Post Medieval

  Where, when and how found: Pitminster, Somerset; recorded with PAS in 2010; metal detecting

  Finder: Kevin Neal

  Where is it now? Returned to finder

  Visit: Toy museums around the country

  Despite all our cutting-edge technology, many of us still really love old-fashioned miniature toys – and three hundred years ago there was the same appetite for tiny novelties, particularly toy weapons and artillery miniatures. This toy cannon and wheeled gun carriage were discovered by Kevin Neal while he was metal detecting near Pitminster, Somerset. It dates to the early 1700s, and the level of preservation is exceptional. The cannon is cast copper alloy and the gun carriage is made from copper-alloy sheet and iron, with pins for the cannon to pivot on.

  It’s not clear whether these miniature cannon were normally played with and used by children, or whether they were more often purchased as entertaining trinkets for adults. It’s likely that different-quality miniature cannon were produced at this time – cheaper toys for imaginative play only, and high-quality miniatures that could actually have been fired using gunpowder and mini cannonballs.

  “If anyone had ever tried to fire it, this miniature treasure could have exploded in their face”

  Many households would have had musket powder that could be used to fire a toy cannon – modern analysis suggests that a miniature would require somewhere between 0.3g and 2.8g of powder. Pistol shot or buckshot could have been used for ‘cannonballs’, or any household item that could be fashioned into a hard, round projectile. The powder and mini cannonball would be loaded through the muzzle, just like a real cannon. Finally, a fuse, most likely a strand of hemp fibre impregnated with flammable saltpetre solution, known as a ‘slow match’, would be lit and applied.

  It is doubtful that these little cannon were sold with instructions, so a trial and error approach was required. It would have been a very hazardous business – too much powder and the cannon could explode, too little powder and it could misfire or block.

  Additionally, it wouldn’t always be obvious whether a cannon was a cheap toy with flaws in the metal, or a safe, well-cast working miniature. Attempting to fire a substandard toy cannon could have tragic consequences. Some cannon have been discovered ripped open, the barrels fractured and torn – clear evidence that they’ve exploded under the firing pressures.

  Analysis of the Pitminster Cannon reveals that the muzzle casting was off-centre. One wall of the cannon is 2.7mm thick, the other just 1.7mm. Such an irregular shape means that if anyone had ever tried to fire it, this miniature treasure could have exploded in their face.

  Miniature cannon are the most common toys to survive in British archaeological contexts as they’re made of thick copper alloy, which survives well in the ground. But the gun carriages that they sat in are incredibly rare survivals. Some must have been made from wood which has since rotted away; experts believe that when fragments of copper-alloy gun carriages have been found, they might not have been recognised as such.

  The Pitminster Cannon, because of its extraordinary preservation, is a truly exceptional British treasure.

  See also:

  Fort George Toy Soldiers

  Dartmoor Sword

  Raglan Ring

  The finest gold ring in Wales

  Date: 1440–1475, Late Medieval

  Where, when and how found: Raglan, Monmouthshire, Wales; 1998; metal detecting

  Finder: Anonymous

  Where is it now? National Museum Wales, Cardiff

  www.museumwales.ac.uk

  Also visit: Raglan Castle, managed by Cadw

  www.cadw.wales.gov.uk

  This finder was metal detecting in a field near Raglan Castle in Monmouthshire when he hit the signal for this enormous gold signet ring. The origin of the term ‘signet’ is from the old French meaning ‘small seal’. The flat top, the bezel, is the part used to make an imprint in wax to identify documents as authentic and official, but rings like this were also worn as personal jewellery.

  The bezel of the Raglan Ring is circular and engraved with a prancing lion, known as a ‘lion passant’ (a heraldic term meaning ‘walking to the left’), on a background of flowers and bordered with a phrase written in ‘Blackletter’, a gothic script. It reads, ‘to yow feythfoull’ or ‘feythfoull to yow’ (faithful to you), depending on where you start reading the phrase. On either side of the lion are the initials W and A, probably the initials of the owner of the ring. The shoulders of the ring are finely engraved with stylised flowers, stems and leaves. A couple of other gold rings have very similar engraved patterns, for example the Episcopal ring of the Bishop of Hereford, John Stanbury, who served from 1452 to 1474. Along with the lettering, this has helped date the Raglan ring to the middle or third quarter of the 15th century.

  The ring is massive – 47.97g of gold, with an internal diameter of 25mm. Most male signet rings are around 20mm in diameter, so this was clearly made for a man with very big fingers, or was perhaps designed to be worn over a glove. We don’t know who owned it, but putting together circumstantial evidence with the findspot, the best candidate is William Herbert, first Earl of Pembroke.

  The first Earl

  Born around 1423, William decided to take an English form of his name, rather than follow his father, who was known as William ap Thomas. William married Anne Deveraux in 1449, and they had at least ten children together. It’s been tentatively suggested that the W and A initials on the ring refer to ‘William and Anne’, and that the declaration of faithfulness on the ring (‘to you faithful’) could be to both his wife and his king. William did father at least three illegitimate children, though – sleeping with women who weren’t your wife didn’t automatically count as being unfaithful in the 15th century.

  William Herbert’s father began building the grand and fashionable Raglan Castle in the late 1420s, and his son remodelled in grand style. It’s unusually late for castle-building, but William’s plans put Raglan at the cutting edge of 15th century interior design and architecture. Enormous mullioned windows (mullions are the vertical bars that divide adjacent windows), a polygonal keep and a double drawbridge as well as acres of well-tended estate land with orchards, fishponds and deer parks declared the Earl’s wealth and taste.

  “The ring is massive – 47.97g of gold, with an internal diameter of 25mm”

  This was a precarious time, however, and the civil wars known as the ‘Wars of the Roses’ or the ‘Cousins’ War’ raged across the country from 1455 to 1487. It pitted the houses of York and Lancaster against one another for possession of the English throne. William supported the Yorkist claim to the throne, and was ennobled by the Yorkist king, Edward IV, in 1461 as Lord Herbert of Raglan. He was made Earl of Pembroke in 1468 in recognition of his ongoing service and loyalty. King Edward described him as the ‘chosen and faithful’ – and William ultimately gave his life in support of his king, when he was captured and executed after the Battle of Edgecote Moor in 1469. Before he was killed, William was said to have been allowed to write one last letter to his wife, Anne.

  “We don’t know whether this ring was lost during William’s lifetime, or at some point afterwards. It was an isolated find – a secret treasure that was lucky to be rediscovered”

  King Edward IV died in 1483, possibly of typhoid, and his young son Edward V succeeded to the throne. But being only twelve years old, the real power went to Richard, Edward IV’s brother, young Edward’s uncle. The young Prince disappeared mysteriously in the Tower of London, and Richard declared himself King Richard III (now more famously known as the ‘King in the Car Park’). Richard was the last Yorkist king, and the side that William Herbert and thousands of men died for was eventually b
eaten and Henry Tudor, of the House of Lancaster, claimed the English throne as King Henry VII.

  We don’t know whether this ring was lost during William’s lifetime, or at some point afterwards. It was an isolated find – a secret treasure that was lucky to be rediscovered.

  See also:

  Boar Badge of Richard III

  Seal Matrix of Stone Priory

  Great War Victory Medal

  The universal medal marking the sacrifice of a generation

  Date: 1919, Modern

  Where, when and how found: Abertridwr, near Cardiff, Wales; 2007; chance find while clearing a stream

  Finder: Leighton Jones

  Where is it now? Returned to finder, but he’s looking for family of medal owner

  Visit: Firing Line, Cardiff Castle Museum of the Welsh Soldier

  www.cardiffcastlemuseum.org.uk

  Leighton Jones was working for Abertridwr council when his team got a call to unblock a drainage stream. He’s a keen metal detectorist, and reckons that it was years of spotting objects while detecting that meant he noticed a muddy, disc-shaped object sitting in the debris of the stream, which turned out to be a WWI Inter-Allied Victory Medal.

  The Victory Medal was created jointly by fourteen allied nations in March 1919 so a single, universal medal could be issued to all allied soldiers across the globe. Different nations did issue slight variations, but the general design is the same: 36mm in diameter, made from bronze, attached to a rainbow-striped ribbon. On the front is the winged figure of Victory holding a palm branch in her right hand, on the reverse, surrounded by a laurel wreath, is the legend: