Silverdale Hoard
Coordinates: 54°10′N 2°50′W / 54.17°N 2.83°W
The Silverdale Hoard is a collection of over 200 pieces of silver jewellery and coins discovered near Silverdale, Lancashire, England, in September 2011. The items were deposited together in and under a lead container buried about 16 inches (41 cm) underground which was found in a field by a metal detectorist. It is believed to date to around AD 900, a time of intense conflict between the Anglo-Saxons and the Danish settlers of northern England. The hoard is one of the largest Viking hoards ever discovered in the UK. It has been purchased by Lancashire Museums Service and has been displayed at Lancaster City Museum and the Museum of Lancashire in Preston. It is particularly significant for its inclusion of a coin stamped with the name of a previously unknown Viking ruler.
The hoard was discovered by local metal detectorist Darren Webster after 20 minutes of detecting in a field that he had previously searched several times before without finding anything more significant than a Tudor half-groat. His wife had given him the detector the previous Christmas as a present, and he was taking a short time off to try his luck before heading to work. When he found the casket he was initially disappointed, as it appeared to be merely a sheet of lead, but when he lifted it he found that it had been shaped into a container from which silver objects spilled out as he raised it. According to Webster, "the minute I found [the silver] I knew what it was or had a very good idea what it was." He realised immediately that it was "more than likely Viking." The find was reported to the Portable Antiquities Scheme's local Finds Liaison Officer and the items were taken to the British Museum for weighing, analysing, cataloguing and cleaning.
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