Medieval ring found by Norfolk detectorist could make £18k
A rare Medieval bishop's ring found by a retired firefighter in a Norfolk field is expected to fetch up to £18,000 at auction.The gold ring, which has a central hexagonal cabochon sapphire with two emeralds and two garnets, was uncovered by detectorist Mark Sell, 63, in King Row, Shipdham, in 2019.Mr Sell said he was "amazed" when he spotted some gold glistening in the mud and planned to split the money with the landowner.The ring, which dates from the late 12th to early 13th Century, will go under the hammer at Noonans Mayfair on 26 March.
Mr Sell said he had been in the field a couple of times before, but had not found anything of importance.After trying again for a couple of hours before it got dark one evening in November 2019, his metal detector picked up a faint signal.He dug down about nine inches (23cm) and could not believe his luck."I was amazed to see a thin line of gold in the clod of mud that I had dug up, and as I wiped away the mud, I could see the bezel of a medieval gold jewelled ring," he said."I could also see that the ring was complete with all of the original jewels still in place and was in pristine condition."He reported it to the landowner and it was left with the county's Finds Liaison Officer. It was then temporarily displayed at the British Museum before being prepared for auction.Laura Smith, jewellery expert at Noonans Mayfair, said: "The village of Shipdham was well established by the time of the Norman Conquest, extensively detailed in the Domesday Book of 1086, and at that time recorded as being within the largest 20% of settlements in England. "This form of Medieval ring, with a principal cabochon stone - usually a sapphire - surrounded by smaller collet set satellite stones (garnets or rubies, and emeralds), can be securely dated to the late 12th or early 13th Century, and is associated with the bishopric."
Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Metro
8 hours ago
- Metro
Chemical spill at Ohio explosives plant forces evacuations and grounds flights
A chemical leak at an explosives manufacturing plant in Ohio has prompted an entire village to evacuated and grounded flights within thousands of miles. Nitric acid spilled from a tank at Austin Powder Red Diamond plant on Wednesday morning, sending a massive orange-colored plume into the air. A 5,000-gallon tank released 3,000 gallons of the chemical around 8.30am, according to Vinton County EMA spokesman Robert Czechlewski Got a story? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ Or you can submit your videos and pictures here. For more stories like this, check our news page. Follow on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. You can now also get articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here. MORE: Killer Asian needle ants are invading the US MORE: Toddler dies after 'drunk dad left her in a hot car for nine hours' MORE: Trump likens LA protests to foreign 'invasion' amid attempt to block him from using troops
Scottish Sun
15 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
The 65p Tesco buy that cleaned black spots off my grubby patio & left it looking brand new – just soak and scrub
Plus, natural cleaning solutions if you have pets budget hack The 65p Tesco buy that cleaned black spots off my grubby patio & left it looking brand new – just soak and scrub ONE keen gardener has shared his hack for cleaning up his "grubby" patio and it only costs 65p. Taking to the Garden on a Budget Facebook page, one man described using some bleach, water and pressure washer to transform his neighbour's patio. 3 One Facebook user shared how he cleaned up this 'grubby' patio Credit: Gardening on a Budget Official/ Facebook 3 He applied bleach and water for one hour before washing it off Credit: Gardening on a Budget Official/ Facebook 'Just to demonstrate the cheapest and most effective way of cleaning a patio I did my neighbours today so some before and and water left to soak and pressure washed,' wrote Facebook user Scott on the page and shared before and after photos of his efforts. This method would only set you back 65p for the bleach from Tesco, provided you have access to a pressure washer. He was inundated with questions about his method and asked for tips on how to get the best result. Scott explained how he left the bleach for one hour to soak and dry before washing it off. "What's the ratio to bleach and water please ???" asked one person to which Scott replied, "Fill a bucket and 300 ml of bleach. The key to this is brush it in and let it soak until dry." Others pointed out that using bleach outside was not great for the environment and some people asked for pet friendly alternatives. Scott said of pet friendly options: "Have done it with washing up liquid too in the past with similar results. Just to break the debris from the surface is all your doing. Bleach merely speeds up the process. Go for Fairy as long as its gets a light scrub and soaks in your good." When using bleach in the backyard, it is important to do it safely and to keep it away from plants, because bleach is toxic to all living things and will damage the soil. It should never be used in garden beds as it can make your soil too alkaline to grow plants. When bleach breaks down in your soil, it leaves behind salt, which is harmful to plants. If you have weeds between patio slabs, and choose to use bleach to kill them, it can also damage the stones. My garden was looking so old and the patio was broken - now it's a lush oasis and people can't believe how little I spent Bleach also has strong fumes and can be bad for the environment and your health. It's not only the bleach which can be damaging to the backyard, but also overusing a pressure washer. According to paving specialist and founding director of Infinite Paving, Rowan Cripps, overusing pressure washers can damage or even remove the sealant on the stone, which is there to make the patio last longer.
The Sun
15 hours ago
- The Sun
The 65p Tesco buy that cleaned black spots off my grubby patio & left it looking brand new – just soak and scrub
ONE keen gardener has shared his hack for cleaning up his "grubby" patio and it only costs 65p. Taking to the Garden on a Budget Facebook page, one man described using some bleach, water and pressure washer to transform his neighbour's patio. 3 3 'Just to demonstrate the cheapest and most effective way of cleaning a patio I did my neighbours today so some before and and water left to soak and pressure washed,' wrote Facebook user Scott on the page and shared before and after photos of his efforts. This method would only set you back 65p for the bleach from Tesco, provided you have access to a pressure washer. He was inundated with questions about his method and asked for tips on how to get the best result. Scott explained how he left the bleach for one hour to soak and dry before washing it off. "What's the ratio to bleach and water please ???" asked one person to which Scott replied, "Fill a bucket and 300 ml of bleach. The key to this is brush it in and let it soak until dry." Others pointed out that using bleach outside was not great for the environment and some people asked for pet friendly alternatives. Scott said of pet friendly options: "Have done it with washing up liquid too in the past with similar results. Just to break the debris from the surface is all your doing. Bleach merely speeds up the process. Go for Fairy as long as its gets a light scrub and soaks in your good." When using bleach in the backyard, it is important to do it safely and to keep it away from plants, because bleach is toxic to all living things and will damage the soil. It should never be used in garden beds as it can make your soil too alkaline to grow plants. When bleach breaks down in your soil, it leaves behind salt, which is harmful to plants. If you have weeds between patio slabs, and choose to use bleach to kill them, it can also damage the stones. Bleach also has strong fumes and can be bad for the environment and your health. It's not only the bleach which can be damaging to the backyard, but also overusing a pressure washer. According to paving specialist and founding director of Infinite Paving, Rowan Cripps, overusing pressure washers can damage or even remove the sealant on the stone, which is there to make the patio last longer. 3
