Experts hope coin case will be warning to others

A court case involving a Shropshire woman who found and failed to report treasure was the first of its kind in the country, experts said today.

And they said they hoped the "landmark" case in Ludlow this week will send out a clear message to others who do the same.

It comes after Kate Harding admitted failing to notify the coroner after discovering a rare piedfort - a silver coin dating from the 1300s - when she appeared in court on Wednesday.

Today Dr Michael Lewis, deputy head of the department of Portable Antiquities and Treasure at the British Museum, confirmed the case was the first known of its kind in the country to have resulted in prosecution.

Dr Lewis said today: "This is a landmark case and it sends a clear message to those who fail to report treasure.

"It shows that the police and the coroner's service give treasure and archaeological heritage law a high profile and will take proactive measures against those that disregard it."

Ludlow Magistrates Court heard how Harding, 23, of The Hawthorns, Ludlow, took the artefact to Ludlow Museum in January 2009 for identification and recording with the Portable Antiquities Scheme.

She originally said she had found the item in her garden.

Once it had been identified by experts at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery and the British Museum, he informed Harding that she had a legal obligation to report the find to the coroner.

Despite repeated att-empts to contact her by both the finds liaison officer and the coroner, Harding failed to report the discovery and the police were notified, the court was told.

Harding was ordered to hand over the piedfort.

She was given a conditional discharge and ordered to pay £25 of the £300 court costs.

The piedfort will now be the subject of an inquest to determine whether it is treasure.

The court was told that the coin was unearthed by Harding and her mother in a garden in Tenbury Wells and was of great sentimental value to the defendant.

Mr Brendan Reedy, for Harding, said she had been given the coin by her mother when she was just nine years old and her mother died soon afterwards.

By Sophie Bignall