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Ordinary people who found extraordinary treasure

Normal people finding incredible things
Sutton Hoo, UK
Sutton Hoo, UK
Temple ruins under a house, Israel
Temple ruins under a house, Israel
St Anthony’s copper ingots, UK
St Anthony’s copper ingots, UK
The Thornbury Hoard, UK
The Thornbury Hoard, UK
Largest dinosaur in Australia, Aus
Largest dinosaur in Australia, Aus
The Hackney Hoard, UK
The Hackney Hoard, UK
Church beneath the backyard, Turkey
Church beneath the backyard, Turkey
42,000-year-old mammoth, Siberia
42,000-year-old mammoth, Siberia
Frome Hoard, UK
Frome Hoard, UK
Saddle Ridge Hoard, US
Saddle Ridge Hoard, US
Iron Age gold, UK
Iron Age gold, UK
Battle of Hastings coin hoard, UK
Battle of Hastings coin hoard, UK
Ichthyosaur fossil, UK
Ichthyosaur fossil, UK
Remains of an Aztec palace, Mexico
Remains of an Aztec palace, Mexico
Enigma machine from WWII, Baltic Sea
Enigma machine from WWII, Baltic Sea
Hermes head found in a sewer, Greece
Hermes head found in a sewer, Greece
Wood from the Great Pyramid, UK
Wood from the Great Pyramid, UK
Peebles Bronze Age hoard, UK
Peebles Bronze Age hoard, UK
1 of 37
Courtesy Queensland Museum

Normal people finding incredible things

Archaeologists have unearthed some incredible, history-defining artefacts over the years, but it isn’t just the professionals who have found top treasures. From Sutton Hoo, featured in Netflix film The Dig, to an Enigma machine discovered by divers to Australia's biggest dinosaur, the stories of ordinary people and amateur hunters who have discovered some of the most significant historical finds in the last century are nothing short of extraordinary. Click or scroll through to read the tales behind these incredible treasure finds.

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Hannah Ward-Glenton

15 June 2021

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