George Powell and Layton Davies, in 2015, these professional treasure hunters drove an hour and a half north of their home in South Wales to a small hamlet named Eye, which was a few miles outside of the bustling center of Leominster. With metal detectors in hand, they began their hopeful search for something exciting.
The Land Of Detector Hobbyists
Throughout both England and Wales, there are about 20,000 detector enthusiasts, so that goes to show you just how prevalent underground treasure was throughout the United Kingdom. Mostly the finds were just mundane metal fragments, but just knowing there could be something out there kept the hobby alive. And, not long into the two men’s terrain-scouring afternoon, both detectors picked up signals.
The Search Begins!
The men carefully waved their instruments to pinpoint the location where the signal was strongest, and then the frantic digging began. Powell and Davies both knew their excitement could end with disappointment, but once they reached a depth of three feet, they stared in awe.
A Discovery Like No Other
There, hidden in the earth, was an unbelievable collection of various golden objects. Powell and Davies looked at each other in disbelief. This was the largest collection they had ever found, and they’d been dedicated detectorists for years! But, although the find was shocking, knowing a bit of history about the land didn’t make it all that impossible.
A Viking History
During the second half of the eighteenth century, droves of Vikings launched massive attacks into Anglo-Saxon Britain from their homeland of Scandinavia. They would typically ransack monastery vaults, which contained intricately crafted silver, gold artifacts, and coins. It certainly looked like the two men stumbled across a Viking treasure hoard. But, despite the excitement coursing through their veins, discoveries that large came with a catch.
Treasure Act Of 1996
Due to the popularity of metal detecting, Britain passed a history-preserving law called the Treasure Act of 1996. This law required anyone finding two or more pieces of actual treasure in the same place had to report it to local authorities. Since the men found literally an entire hoard, they were under legal obligation to report it. Especially since many of the coins in the discovery were some of the rarest on the planet.
“Two Emperor” Coins
These ninth-century coins featured two Anglo-Saxon kings, Ceolwulf II of Mercia and Alfred of Wessex. Called “Two Emperor” coins, numismatists (coin specialists) only knew of two ever discovered, and neither of them had ever hit the open market. One coin alone could fetch around $100,000, so if Powell and Davies found a whole collection, it could be worth millions! Soon, a British museum curator caught wind of the discovery.
A Frustrating Realization
Gareth Williams was a curator of early-medieval coinage and Viking collections. Naturally, when he realized a hoard of possible Viking treasure was found, he was more than intrigued. However, he wasn’t exactly pleased with the details. Apparently, several of the Two Emperor coins were being offered to various dealers, which meant the monumental find was in danger of disappearing into the black market. He demanded the men turn in their find now.
Reavill Reaches Out
Word of the hoard soon reached Peter Reavill, the local Finds Liaison Officer. Once he heard about the Saxon coins, he emailed the two men to remind them if, in fact, they had a significant find on their hands, they needed to call authorities. But, he was met with silence from Davies and the words, “I won’t tolerate any slander,” from Powell. Meanwhile, the two men did approach someone else with more information.
The Questioning Begins
Two days after Reavill’s email, Powell and Davies went to the Museum of Wales to meet with a man Davies had previously dealt with before, Finds Liaison Officer Mark Lodwick. They presented him with several items from the Viking hoard: a golden bracelet, a ring, a crystal orb, and two of the Saxon coins. Lodwick began questioning as to the treasure’s whereabouts, and something didn’t sit right with their answers.
Something Fishy Brewing
Lodwick noticed the two Saxon coins had similar signs of wear and tear, indicating they were buried together. But, the men insisted they were found apart, perhaps to sidestep the Treasure Act of 1996. Then, when asked where exactly the treasure was found, Powell pointed to several different locations on a map. When checked by Lodwick using Google Earth, it didn’t even exist. There was clearly something else going on here.
Secret Meeting
So, what was happening with this Viking treasure trove? Well, just as curator Gareth Williams and Finds Liaison Officer Reavill feared, the coins were being sold illegally. Just two days after the men made the epic discovery, they took several pieces to a café where they met people who could help them conceal the lucrative hoard.
Bringing More Accomplices Onboard
One person at the secret powwow was Paul Wells (left), a retired builder who had since taken up an interest in the coin trade. He was floored. “It was as if they had been put in the ground on the day they were minted. My eyes nearly fell out of my head.” Several days later, Powell and Davies consulted Simon Wicks (right), a coin trader and detectorist with a notoriously shady reputation.
Contacting Authorities
Wicks took several pieces of the Viking hoard to a local auction house called Dix Noonan Webb, where a coin cataloguer could determine their approximate worth. James Brown, the in-house expert, immediately recognized the items as coming from one single hoard, and he knew Wicks was trying to illegally move these pieces through the black market. Brown, without hesitation, contacted the authorities.
The House Of Cards Crumbles
The police were briefed on the possibility of a heritage crime, and the British Numismatic Trade Association was also alerted to this activity. Powell and Davies, at the time, had no idea the investigation was underway. A little more than two months after officers were briefed, everything came crashing down.
Lies, Lies, Lies
Naturally, Powell and Davies claimed they were unaware of the potential value of the coins — and the fact there was a hoard at all. Powell insisted he was a long-time detectorist who always obtained permission to search land and turned in any questionable discoveries. After the arrest and initial questioning, police searched both men’s homes in case they were hiding even more.
The Search Continues
Based on the phony story Powell and Davies wove, officers expected to find something they could use as evidence in their homes. However, besides some empty glass display cases, the searches turned up empty. “They didn’t have the silver coins, and things like that, that you’d expect from detectorists who went out on a regular basis,” Reaville said. But, that didn’t mean the men wouldn’t pay for what the officers already unearthed.
Not So Lucrative Anymore
Powell, Davies, Wicks, and Wells stood trial for the Viking hoard crime in 2019. All four men faced charges of theft, conspiracy to conceal, and converting criminal property. The trial last two months, and all four men were found guilty of every charge. Powell was slammed with 10 years behind bars, Davies received eight, and Wicks got five. Wells, however, managed to get a 12-month probation.
Greed Always Fails
Greed. That was what drove the men to do what they did. The shame of it all was if they simply obtained the correct permits and were honest about their find, they would have still received a huge payday. But the truth is that even following laws about buried treasure can lead to serious trouble..
