Richard III rare coin found near historic Battle of Bosworth site
https://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/news/leicester-news/richard-iii-rare-coin-found-788233
A metal detectorist has tracked down a rare gold coin from Richard III's reign near to the site of the Battle of Bosworth.
The Half Angel is one of just a handful of such coins that have survived from the king's two-year reign.
It was discovered by Michelle Vall while she was taking part in a charity detecting rally in September at Monks Kirby, near the Bosworth Field. News of the discovery has just come to light.
The coin will be auctioned international coins, medals and jewellery specialist Dix Noonan Webb in London on December 13. It is expected to fetch up to £15,000.
Christopher Webb, head of the coins department at Dix Noonan Webb, said: "This is a very rare discovery that has miraculously survived in a field for more than five centuries.
"Its importance as a coin is enhanced by the tantalising possibility that it may have belonged to one of Richard's army, whose defeat at Bosworth ended the Wars of the Roses and ushered in the Tudor dynasty."
Michelle, a 51-year-old primary school teaching assistant, from Blackpool, said: "After detecting for two-and-a-half hours in a farmer's field, I got a signal.
"The coin was deep down, about 16 inches below the surface, and the soil there is thick clay so it took a bit of digging out.
"I spotted this glint of gold in the hole, although I obviously did not know exactly what it was at first. I put it in the palm of my hand and then I went back to the organisers' tent.
"One of them identified it and people became very excited. That was when I realised that it was a Half Angel."
Michelle has decided to sell the coin as, she said, it is "too valuable to keep".
She added: "I did not want to keep it in a locked cupboard.
"I feel very privileged that I have found something so precious and historic.
"The memory of that day, the excitement not just of myself but also of other detectorists, when I found that beautiful, tiny, piece of historic gold will live with me forever."