Oxfordshire Metal detectorist mistook 'find of his life' for rusty tent peg
http://www.heraldseries.co.uk/news/15466752.Metal_detectorist_mistook___39_find_of_his_life__39__for_rusty_tent_peg/
A RARE Roman artefact, described by a metal detectorist as the 'find of his life', was initially mistaken for a tent peg.
Tim Moody, from Charney Basset, near Wantage, discovered the ancient measuring instrument â€" similar to a pair of compasses â€" about 10 inches beneath the surface of an undisclosed farmer's field, somewhere in the county.
The 18cm bronze 'dividers' feature an eagle's head and decorative scrolls, and would have been used for drawing maps or illustrating manuscripts at the end of the Roman period in Britain.
It only caught Mr Moody's attention when he examined his day's findings.
He said: "When I first pulled it out of the ground I thought it was an old tent peg.
"I put it in my finds bag and thought no more about it until I washed it in the sink later on. I could see the detail â€" the eagle’s head and the scrolls â€" was unlike anything I’d ever seen and I realised immediately it must be something of importance."