An afternoon of detecting little more than bottle tops ended in the find of a lifetime when Birchington pensioner James Cooper unearthed a centuries old gold pendant.

It has recently been declared treasure by a specially convened coroner’s inquest and is now with the British Museum waiting for a figure to be set by its rewards committee. The museum is likely to keep the pendant and any money will eventually be shared between James and the owner of the land upon which it was found.

Experts have decided the pendant, about the same size as a 5p coin, is 1,400 years old and would have been worn by a high ranking Anglo Saxon woman, possibly a tribal princess, and buried with her when she died.

James, a keen metal 'detectorist' for the past four years, said: “I was detecting with fellow members of the Thanet and Wantsum Metal Detector Club in Ramsgate at the time and hadn’t found much all afternoon. Then the machine gave me another signal and I dug up the pendant. It was buried only four inches below the surface, although I’m sure it was originally much deeper years ago.

“I dug up the earth and handed it to a friend saying 'don’t tell me I’ve got another bottle top.’ He took one look and told me it was the find of a lifetime. I was stunned.

“The value of the pendant doesn’t bother me so much, its history is more important to me.

“We are all very grateful to the landowners in the area for allowing us to detect on their land. Without them we wouldn’t have a hobby. There are now fewer opportunities to go detecting as farmers are using their land constantly with shorter gaps between growing crops.”

The Thanet and Wantsum Metal Detectors Club meets on the first Wednesday of the month at the Margate branch of the Royal British Legion in St John’s Road.

Reward

The Treasure Act 1996 determines how archaeological finds can be declared as treasure. Finds of gold, silver and precious metals must be reported to the local coroner within 14 days of discovery. If a subsequent inquest declares it as treasure, the British Museum can give the finder, and the landowner, a reward.

One of the most important finds in recent times was the discovery of the Bronze age Ringlemere cup on farmland near Sandwich in 2001. The British Museum gave a reward of £250,000.

The Treasure Act 1996 determines how archaelogical finds can be declared as treasure. Finds of gold, silver and precious metals must be reported to the local coroner within 14 days of discovery. If a subsequent inquest declares it as treasure, the British Museum can give the finder, and the landowner, a reward.

One of the most important finds in recent times was the discovery of the Bronze age Ringlemere cup on farmland near Sandwich in 2001. The British Museum gave a reward of £250,000.