Pair Who Found £300,000 Ancient Gold Treasure Trove Have Falling Out

In a drama reminiscent of the old movie The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre, two former friends have had a falling out over the splitting of the proceeds they're entitled to after finding a cache of ancient Celtic gold coins on someone else's property.

A British Museum valuation committee has now followed convention by ruling that half should go to the landowner, farmer Cliff Green, 69.

But metal-detecting enthusiast Mr Darke, 62, who found the treasure, is furious that he has been awarded £75,803, while Mr Lewis, 56, who was drafted in to help later, will receive £74,196.

Undisclosed costs in the ongoing legal battle they are locked in means the final figures will be significantly less.

Mr Darke describes the episode as a ‘nightmare’ and says he wishes he had never come across the first coin – but has vowed to fight the ruling.

Mr Lewis admits the bust-up has left a ‘nasty taste’ but insists he got what he deserves as he located most of the hoard.

‘As far as I’m concerned it is a fair deal, end of story,’ he added.

The story begins back in 2008, when Mr. Darke found a single coin while searching a 30-acre plot in Dallinghoo, near Woodbridge, Suffolk. He later found eight more, and asked his then-friend Mr. Lewis to give him a hand. Together, they unearthed hundreds more coins. Because Mr. Darke thought he deserved more, because he found then first and did a lot of work doing so, he and Mr. Lewis got lawyers and are entangled in a legal dispute.


It's a sad ending to an adventure that resulted in the most significant find of ancient Iceni coins to date. The Iceni were a Celtic tribe located in Suffolk that revolted against the Roman occupiers back in 61 AD. The coins have been dated as being made between 40 and 15 B.C.