Isle of Man Viking jewellery found by metal detectorist

A "stunning" collection of 1,000-year-old gold and silver Viking jewellery has been discovered on the Isle of Man by a metal detectorist. Retired police officer Kath Giles made the find on farm land in the north of the island. 

The horde includes a gold arm ring and a "massive" silver brooch dating back to 950 AD.

It was unearthed in December but has been revealed for the first time during a coroner's hearing. Manx National Heritage's curator of archaeology Allison Fox said the arm ring in particular was a "rare find".

Ms Giles said she immediately knew she had found "something very special" and was "thrilled" at the discovery, which is likely to be worth several thousand pounds. "I knew straight away that it was a significant and exciting find. 

The findings were declared treasure in an inquest at Douglas Courthouse. Discoveries of archaeological interest on the island must be reported to Manx National Heritage within two weeks. If items are legally classified as treasure, they belong to the crown and the finder is rewarded.

Precisely how much this latest finding is worth has not been determined, but similar items of Viking jewellery have been valued at £1,500 each. A larger horde of Viking treasure found in Lancashire in 2011 was valued at £110,000.

Ms Fox said the gold arm band was rare because silver was a far more common commodity for trading during the Viking era. "The arm ring, brooch and cut armband are all high-status personal ornaments and represent a large amount of accumulated wealth," she said. "Finding just one of these items would be of significance. The fact that all were found together suggests that whoever buried them was extremely wealthy and probably felt immediately and acutely threatened."

Question 1: Indicate whether the following statements are TRUE OR FALSE and write down the sentence or the part of the text that justifies your answer.

1. The jewellery was first shown to the public in December.

2. The person who discovers a treasure cannot keep it but gets some money in exchange.

3. It is the first time that Viking jewels have been found.

4. The person who hid the jewels was afraid to lose them.

Question 2: Answer the following questions in your own words according to the text.

1. What was Ms Giles' attitude when she found the jewels?

2. What is the experts' opinion about the discovery?

Question 3: Find words or phrases in the text that correspond to the words and definitions given.

1. awesome (p.1)

2. uncover (p.2)

3. custodian (p.2)

4. pay back (p.4)

5. group, number (p.5)

Adapted from BBC news

Key

Question1

1. False. " It was unearthed in December but has been revealed for the first time during a coroner's hearing."

2. True. " If items are legally classified as treasure, they belong to the crown and the finder is rewarded."

3. False. "  similar items of Viking jewellery have been valued at £1,500 each. A larger horde of Viking treasure found in Lancashire in 2011 was valued at £110,000."

4. True. " whoever buried them was extremely wealthy and probably felt immediately and acutely threatened."

Question 2

1. Ms. Giles was really excited when she discovered the jewels and she soon realized it was a very important finding.

2. They were surprised to see the gold arm band since Vikings used silver more than gold. They also appreciated the significance of having found all the items in the same place.

Question 3

1. stunning

2. unearthed / to unearth

3. curator

4. rewarded / to reward

5. horde