VS’is called finding a treasure. Last September, a Briton living in the south-west of the United Kingdom went to a farm, armed with a metal detector. Stroke of luck: the man discovers an old gold coin. Delighted with his find, tells the Dauphiné liberated, he then returns home and posts a photo of his discovery on Facebook, far from imagining the value of his piece.
That’s when Gregory Edmund, an antique coin collector, stumbles upon the lucky treasure seeker’s post. Without difficulty, the man identifies the coin discovered: it is a “gold penny of Henry III”, a coin struck with the face of the English king who reigned between 1216 and 1272. The British sovereign is represented there seated on a throne, and carrying in his hands a globe and a scepter.
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jackpot
In addition to its age, it turns out that the piece discovered is extremely rare: there are only eight other similar ones in the world. An exceptional rarity which only increases its value, especially since the other copies are all held by museums. For once, the “gold penny of Henry III” could therefore fall into the hands of a collector, if the latter is ready to take out his checkbook. Auctioned on Saturday January 22, the piece is estimated… at 480,000 euros.