February 28, 2020 5.12 pm This story is over 49 months old

Veteran finds ‘incredibly rare’ Roman horse brooch in Lincolnshire

It is the second brooch of its kind to be found in the UK
It is in a remarkable condition.

A Grantham metal detector enthusiast found an incredibly rare Roman brooch in a Lincolnshire field.

Experts believe that it has rewritten the understandings around Roman brooches and that it dates back to the dawn of the Roman conquest.

Jason Price, 48, was taking part in a ‘Detecting for Veterans’ weekend when he came across the treasure.

It was the last field of the weekend and it was heavily ploughed, so the metal detectorists didn’t have much hope until Jason started to feel a buzz.

The brooch is very rare.

He said: “About eight inches down I found something caked in mud. At first, I thought it was a piece of litter, but as I cleaned it off, my jaw dropped.

“There it was – a horse brooch. I was shaking. I’ve found things like coins before, but never anything like this. Absolutely amazing!”

Anyone interested in seeing the brooch will be able to find it on display at the Collection Museum in Lincoln later this year.

This type of horse brooch is so rare that this one is only the second one to ever be found in the UK.

The only other one is in the British Museum and is decorated differently, with spots of enamel only.

There is only one other of its kind in the UK.

This Leasingham horse, however, is in a league of its own with its pin situated below the legs and the realistic depiction of a saddle.

Doctor Lisa Brundle said: “This brooch is an exciting and rare discovery. It depicts a fairly realistic horse with an outstanding level of detail and is in remarkable condition – it even has the pin still attached!

“The horse would have originally appeared gold-like and the recesses probably once contained bright red, blue or yellow enamel. It would have been a spectacular sight on someone’s robe.”