A bar owner in Warwickshire, England, has taken up a new hobby, scanning the ground metal detector. He has been doing this for half a year, but the search has never been successful in finding finds. However, not this time! In the evening, walking with a metal detector in the field, he heard a signal, and later saw a chain on the surface. As the lucky man himself says, when he saw what he had found, he screamed like a child with joy. The find turned out to be a pendant on a chain, which was handed over to the authorities. The pendant is now in the British Museum.
A gold ornament was found by a metal detector.
The Gold Heart Pendant is engraved with the initials "K" and "H" and Tudor symbols. Experts believe that the jewel is related to the marriage of the royal couple, King Henry VIII (1491-1547) and the first wife of King Catherine of Aragon.
The decoration belongs to the 16th century, the year 1521 is tentatively assumed. This find is one of the unique pieces of jewelry of this time of the English period. The chain is made of 75 links of 24 carat gold and weighs 300 grams. "Heart" pendant with intertwined initials and "TOVS" and "IORS" (French "toujours" meaning "always") on both sides.
A heart-shaped pendant with initials on the front and a rose and pomegranate image on the back.
Specialists point to other confirmations that this jewel refers to Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon. The "Heart" depicts a pomegranate (plant) and white and red Tudor roses. The pomegranate was a symbol of fertility and was known to be a favorite among symbols for Katarina. She had a pomegranate brooch since she was a child.
Experts did not find confirmation that the jewelry was worn by Hendrik or Kateryna. As the curator of the British Museum says: "It is clear that this pendant belonged to a person of high status, its quality is such that we can be sure that the pendant was commissioned by someone of the high nobility or a high-ranking courtier., or at least associated with such a person."
Heart-shaped chain and pendant.
Researchers have a hypothesis about the origin of the amulet. During the reign of Henry VIII, knightly tournaments were often held, which were accompanied by sumptuous banquets. One of these magnificent events was a celebration organized on the occasion of a meeting with the French king Francis I in 1521 on the Golden Field. It is known from historical sources that the king ordered the production of many jewels, which were supposed to be prizes in tournaments. Therefore, it is assumed that the found jewelry could be a prize of a knight's tournament.
The British Museum plans to buy the find. It should be evaluated beforehand. The pub owner who found the ornament said he would split the reward with the landowner.
