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Bettesworth Construction
archaeology

A “Fantastic Treasure”: 70 Coins Found in a Hampshire Garden Sell for More Than £380,000

A family’s garden discovery near Milford-on-Sea grew to a 70-coin hoard. The €260,000 figure was an estimate; the coins later sold for SFr403,100 at auction.

By Bettesworth Construction Team 3 min read
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A family digging a flowerbed near Milford-on-Sea, Hampshire, uncovered a hoard that ultimately comprised 70 medieval and Tudor coins. The headline figure of €260,000 was not the sale price: it reflected a pre-auction estimate. At auction in Zurich on 5 November 2025, the coins reached a total hammer price of SFr403,100, which BBC News described as just over £380,000. That is the hammer price, not a confirmed figure for what the family received after any deductions.

How many coins were found?

The family made the initial discovery in April 2020 while digging a flowerbed. BBC News reported that the first recovery consisted of 63 gold coins and one silver coin. A later archaeological excavation of the garden recovered six more gold coins, bringing the hoard to 70 coins in total.

The auctioneer’s catalogue lists the final composition as 69 gold coins and one silver coin. That differs from the initial count, and also from the 64-gold-coin figure used in the pre-sale headline. The most reliable final total is 70 coins; where the exact gold-and-silver split matters, the auction catalogue’s 69 gold and one silver is the sale listing.

What did the coins sell for?

The 260,000-euro headline figure was an estimate published before the auction, not the completed result. Before the sale, BBC News reported an estimate of about £230,000. David Guest Numismatics’ archived catalogue identifies the sale as Auction 160, held in Zurich on 5 November 2025. BBC News reported the total hammer price as SFr403,100, or just over £380,000.

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Figure What it means
€260,000 Pre-sale estimate stated in the headline; not the auction result.
About £230,000 Pre-sale estimate reported by BBC News in September 2025.
SFr403,100 Total hammer price reported by BBC News after the 5 November 2025 auction.

A hammer price is the winning bid total reported for the sale. The sources do not establish the family’s net proceeds after any fees, taxes or other deductions, so the hammer price should not be treated as the amount they took home. Auctioneer David Guest told BBC News the coins were sold to “bidders from all over the world and exceeded my expectations”.

When were the coins made?

The collection spans from the 1420s, during Henry VI’s reign, to 1536–37, during Henry VIII’s reign. The auction catalogue describes coins representing four kings, two queens and one cardinal, across five denominations. Pre-sale reporting noted initials associated with Henry VIII’s wives Catherine of Aragon and Jane Seymour.

The coins were not simply a group of Tudor gold pieces: their dates extend back more than a century before the latest examples. BBC News also reported a contemporary value of £26, five shillings and five-and-a-half pence. That is a historical valuation, not a modern equivalent or a measure of the hoard’s auction value.

What happened after the discovery?

  1. April 2020: A family digging a flowerbed near Milford-on-Sea found the first coins.
  2. October 2021: After examination by the British Museum, the hoard was declared treasure.
  3. Later archaeological excavation: Investigators recovered six additional gold coins from the garden.
  4. 2023: No museum acquired the collection during the pandemic lockdown, and it was returned to the family.
  5. 5 November 2025: The collection was sold at David Guest Numismatics’ Auction 160 in Zurich.
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Who buried the hoard?

The family who found the coins has not been named in the reporting. The identity of the person who buried them, and the reason for doing so, are also unknown. The coins’ dates establish when they were made, but do not by themselves establish when or why the hoard was deposited.

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