Human has discovered many surprising things on earth that nobody knew existed before. We have discovered sinkholes on the ground, black holes in the space. Whereas all these discoveries were made by professionals there is one discovery that was made by an amateur treasure hunter that took the world by storm. The name of the person is Mike Smith who set out on a treasure hunt with his metal detector on one of the most mysterious places of the earth i.e. Pembrokeshire. He was not expecting anything more than a penny or two but that is exactly where he made the mistake. The man discovered a never-ending chain that had a mystery tucked onto the other side of it.
As a child, we all have played the game of buried treasure a number of times. This game is mainly about finding hidden good and people. Whereas some of us forget it while growing up, there are people who make it their hobby one of them was Mike Smith. You won't believe what his hobby earns him.............
Mike Smith has a keen interest in history. What interested him, even more, was finding treasures. You can spot him grazing the ground with his metal detector in his free time. You can call it his stress buster. Though he never found anything significant or mind-blowing, he still was hopeful. And as we know who have hopes and determination do not take much time to get success.
This time the man decided to explore Pembrokeshire in the United Kingdom. Exploring the county was not an easy task as it seemed. The region faces rain on a very daily basis. The ground is always wet and sloshy. Furthermore, no groundbreaking discovery was made on its ground until Mark came. Discoveries were limited to old pennies only. But soon everyone was going to learn that the region was way more than anything.
Well, the expedition did not start on a good note. The spot he had decided to work on was waterlogged due to incessant raining that had happened in the past week. However, that did not budge his determination an inch. His instincts were telling him that today was going to be his day.
He moved towards another field to conduct his search. Little did he know that nature had its own plan to surprise him. Right beneath his feet under the ground, something forbidden was lying.
He took out this metal detector and began to sweep it on the ground. Initially, he could not find anything. But as he moved further he saw a wild arc above the field and then he heard a loud beep that his device made. The man started walking but the machine continued beeping.
The man was all surprised and assumed that perhaps something was wrong with his metal detector. Or maybe something was buried beneath the ground. What could it be? Another penny or something that would throw him off balance. He began digging the space.
He dropped his instruments quickly and seized a trowel. Thereafter, he began digging the ground. The wet mud did not give him much trouble as he managed to dig through them quite easily. The man stopped digging when he spotted a round piece of metal springing out of the soil. First, he brushed the dirt off it and pulled it after mustering up all his strength.
Surprisingly, the object did not move an inch, no matter how much Mike tried. It was then he planned on digging the dirt surrounding the object. As he continued to dig the dirt around the object he realized that it was affixed to something. Thereafter, he brought other links to light as well. And when the realization of what had he just discovered dawned upon him, he felt as if the whole world had taken a big turn.
What could be so special about iron links? One thing about the links that actually surprised him was the fact that they seemed endless. He kept on pulling the links that were tucked deeper into the ground. Moreover, the day was gradually fading into the dark. Unfortunately, he had not brought a flashlight either with him. Soon a big mystery was about to unravel.
Soon the whole of the region got swallowed by dark and he had to return home empty-handed. However, he still was not sure what had he found so he informed only the closest friends of his about the discovery. There was a lot of speculation doing rounds on his mind. He still did not know what was lying on the other end of the rusty chain. The man was well aware of the story about ancient burial sites tucked under the Pembrokeshire ground. So was his finding related to that?
Pembrokeshire is famous for being the land of mystery. It is because of its mysterious nature, the place has been a subject of interest in the Mabinogion (renowned 11th-century collection of folktales). The region is bordered with the Celtic Sea and is featured in legends and primitive myths. The county is also called haunted. Mike had no idea that he was going to confront a controversial piece of this Wales’ past.
His curiosity did not let him sleep a second. He knew that tomorrow was going to be full of twists and turns for him. With the break of the first light, he ran to the spot. He needed to figure out which mystery was lying on the other side of the link chain. Well, he did not know at that time that the mystery he was about to discover was going to attract the attention of authorities.
He reached the site and picked the work from where he had left off the last day. He began digging with shaking hand. Shortly after, something strange began to come out of the mud. Furthermore, his trowel hit something hard. He threw the trowel away and began to do away with the dirt with the help of his hand.
Though metal detecting was his hobby, he was well acquainted with the laws concerning it. The man who was taking this expedition as fun had never thought in his wildest dream that this would require him to call the authorities. What had he found inside was way beyond his imagination.
He picked the object and turned it around. It resembled a tooth. More like a molar. It did not take him much time to sense something wrong about it. Once again he decided to follow his instincts. He immediately dropped his tools and took out his phone from his pocket and dialed a number. He was confused, panicked, and nervous. You must be wondering what was so special about the tooth? Here is the hint- The object was just a tip of long-hidden mystery he was going to uncover.
Michael made a call to National Museum Of Wales' officials to inform them about his discovery but the reaction from the other end was nothing like he had expected. In fact, the official laughed off his information. He said, “What the archaeologists said at the time was that because there had never been a find down here before, they didn’t believe it.”
The officials did not take his words seriously until Mike mentioned about the human remains he just might have stumbled upon. Well, this information worked as an eye-opener for the officials. Suddenly their interest in the site catapulted to another level. They asked him to take them to the site. Mike reminisced, “The look on their faces when they saw it said it all.”
Soon an excavation was launched in June. It was then some Archaeologists dug out a couple of chariot wheels made of iron that had gone rusty with time. No doubt, this was an astounding discovery. It was a Celtic chariot burial. Michael said, “My first find was a Celtic horse harness junction piece.” He continued, “When I found it my friends said I would never top it, but the next day I went back and found the rest.” Interestingly, that was not the end........
As Mike excavated about eight inches deeper, he stumbled upon many more decorative pieces such as a brooch, bronze bridle fittings and the handle section of tools. However, the metal had gone green due to corrosion and the bronze pieces still colored with bright red enamel. Mike explained, “This is unprecedented.” “and underneath the chariot, there is still the three-meter metal anomaly. If you go by other chariot finds there could be weapons or it could even be treasure.”
It is not that burial chariot was found for the very first time. There have been many chariot discoveries in the past in Europe but this was the first time that one was found in England. Smith clarified, “I still can’t believe it.” He continued, “Obviously I’ve read other people’s finds. I’ve watched them on telly, and I’ve always thought, I wouldn’t mind finding that, it’s still surreal, and life-changing.”
On being asked how he found the exact place, Mike replied, “It was just instinct. I’d read all about chariot burials and just wished it could have been me, so finding this has been a privilege.” The site has been brought under construction ever since the treasure was discovered. Mike sold off artifacts that he had found earlier.
He had about 34 artifacts in total. He sold them to a museum for a very good amount. However, he did not get the whole of the amount as he had to share 50% of it with the owner of the land. No wonder his findings turned out to be the most famous prize and so the renowned museum National Museum Of Wales wanted to take hold of it for its archives.
Michael said, “I knew the importance of them straight away….I’d read all about chariot burials and just wished it could have been me, so finding this has been a privilege.” Though there is no concrete proof it is believed that the chariot is about 2,500 years old. However, no human remains are found around it.
Doubts are still unclear about the person who was buried along with the discovery. Some suspects it to be a chieftain whereas some believe it to be a queen. As far as the tooth is concerned, it is believed that it belonged to a horse. In case if you don't know then in Iron age it was a tradition of burying chief of high rank with their belongings such as chariots, tack, horses, and their arms. Mike clarified, “Often the wheels were laid flat.” “But this one appeared to have been buried intact. It could have had the chieftain or queen sitting in it. There would have been a mound over it but that has gone.”
Soon, the general public was barred from entering the particular site. Interestingly, the radar installed in the forbidden site brought some unexpected things to the light. The workers were taking the help of a technology named geophysics that does the work of mapping structures tucked beneath the earth. As expected the instrument did reveal a 12m circular earthwork surrounding the burial aka ring ditch.
There was a lot to discover on that particular site. Soon, they found two more burials in ring ditches. Along with a complex of walls many other features came to surface. Mike explained, “The actual field is very large and it is only in the corner of this field. But the settlement is also going into other nearby fields.”
Adam Gwilt who happens to be the principal curator of prehistoric archaeology opened up, “These chariot pieces may have been witness to some of the historical events of the time, as Iron Age peoples defended their ways of life and identities, in the face of an expanding Roman empire. Something like this takes a lot of organization and funding as well so we’ve been working with a number of partners to put together what’s needed to do a continuing investigation.”
He said, “Something like this takes a lot of organization and funding as well so we’ve been working with a number of partners to put together what’s needed to do a continuing investigation.” So next is how much these artifacts got him.
Smith explained, “You’re definitely talking six or seven figures.” He hoped to get £1million for it. He said, “It’s the biggest ever metal detecting find, as in there’s never been a chariot ever discovered by a metal detectorist. There have been hoards found, but never anything like this.”