Just a few days ago, Mark and Colin who use an E-TRAC and an Explorer SE were on one of their sites in Yorkshire. Sometime back it yielded a few Roman coins and now they thought it worth a re-visit.
They went on to find some corroded 4th C issues and then Colin found a silver coated Antoninianus issue. Such a find was in itself nothing unusual for these guys, but something about this coin was different. Neither he nor Mark had seen anything that looked or read a name like it before.
Well there was a very good reason for this... now although the coin has yet to be examined by experts... the legend around its bust side reads IMP.C PROCULUS .AUG. The Emperor Proculus ruled for a few months before being executed by Probus.
The reason the two detectorists could not make out the coin in their hands was that before theirs was found... quote "only one other example from the reign of Proculus is known to exist."
This coin looks every chance to be one of the rarest Roman coins ever located in Britain. True it has yet to be examined and confirmed, but so far its die axis and details are the same as the only other known coin.
So join me in a big fingers crossed for the finder and another extraordinary discovery for metal detecting. This is big news in the numismatic world indeed, and whatever the outcome, it was once again Minelab products that were involved in the discovery.
Congratulations to Colin on this most extraordinary of finds!
Jules - Herts, UK
