Treasure, including a medieval silver brooch and three gold and silver rings, has been found by metal detectorists in fields around Pembrokeshire.
Paul Bennett, acting senior coroner for Pembrokeshire, declared five treasure finds during inquests on Friday, June 17.
The finds include three finger rings, one brooch and a thimble of medieval and post-medieval dates.
Detectorist Lee Evans found a thirteenth- or early fourteenth-century silver annular brooch while metal-detecting on farm land near Cilgerran in May last year.
The frame of the brooch is decorated with herringbone and transverse groove patterns, inlaid with niello - a black enamel-like material providing a colour contrast with the background silver of the brooch.
Dr Mark Redknap, deputy head of archaeology collections and research at the National Museum of Wales said that finds of medieval jewellery such as the silver brooch are being increasingly reported around Wales.
“The prompt reporting of the Cilgerran brooch by the finder has added fresh evidence for personal identity expressed through this niello-decorated class of fashionable brooch circulating in medieval Wales,” he added.
“A form of cultural evidence reliant on archaeological artefacts and knowing where they are being discovered.”
Another item declare treasure on Friday was a medieval silver finger ring found by Vaughan Thomas while metal-detecting in a field near to St Davids in October 2018.
The ring has a broad flattened band and a bezel in the form of a stylised flower with an engraved design. It is likely to date from the thirteenth- to sixteenth centuries.
“The reporting of medieval jewellery such as this decorated silver finger ring through the Portable Antiquities Scheme and the Treasure Act 1996, contributes greatly to our understanding of different fashions and expressions of personal identity in Medieval Wales,” said Sian Iles, Curator Medieval and Later Archaeology at the national museum.
Scolton Manor Museum has expressed an interest in acquiring both the ring and the brooch following an independent valuation by the treasure valuation committee.
Three finds by metal detectorist Jake Webster were also declared as treasure. These included a post-medieval gold and enamel fede ring.
The ring is engraved with flowers, with remnants of blue enamel, with the words Love-God engraved on the inside. It is believed to date from the 17th century.
It was found in a field near Wiston in June 2020. Also found by Mr Webster in the same month near Wiston was a seventeenth-century decorated silver thimble fragment.
His third find was a fragment of a medieval silver ‘stirrup’ ring fragment with a bezel that would have held a precious stone. This was found on November 2020 near Llawhaden Community, Pembrokeshire and dates from the twelfth- to thirteenth- century.
The inquest heard that Narberth Museum is interested in acquiring these treasure finds for its collection.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here