After stumbling upon a ring thought to be from 14th century aristocrats, David Board's discovery is up for auction this month, potentially worth $47,000.
In February 2020, David Board found a diamond wedding ring believed to be from the 14th century with his metal detector in England, according to CNN.
According to the outlet, the gold ring is believed to have been given to Lady Joan Brook by her husband, Sir Thomas Brook, for their 1388 wedding.
The ring has an inscription in medieval French on the inside that translates to English as, “As I hold your faith, hold mine,” per the outlet.
Nigel Mills, a consultant in coins and antiquities at Noonans auction house, where the ring is up for auction on November 29, the ring is in “almost perfect condition," according to the outlet.
The jewelry has a golden hoop of two entwined bands to symbolize marital union and an inverted diamond set into it, according to the Noonans site.
Board, new to metal detection at the time, initially thought the discovery was trash, according to SWNS.
“I was searching [on a field] and found a few old coins,” Board told the outlet.
“A lot of silver paper, the kind from sweet wrappers. I was walking back to the car when I got a signal, dug the hole, saw a bit of gold, and I thought, ‘Oh, not another bit of wrapping paper,’ and then found the ring.”
According to CNN, when Board picked up the find he thought it was scrap metal and put it in his pocket.
Once he was home and washed the mud off, he told SWNS he realized it was much more.
"It was once I got home and washed it off that we realized it was a lot better than we thought," Board said to CNN.
