{"id":249,"date":"2026-01-30T14:59:50","date_gmt":"2026-01-30T14:59:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/?p=249"},"modified":"2026-01-30T14:59:50","modified_gmt":"2026-01-30T14:59:50","slug":"theyve-struck-gold-fortunate-couple-unearth-264-gold-coins-dating-back-to-the-reign-of-king-james-i-hidden-beneath-their-kitchen-floor-raking-in-754000-at-auction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/?p=249","title":{"rendered":"They\u2019ve Struck Gold! Fortunate Couple Unearth 264 Gold Coins Dating Back to the Reign of King James I Hidden Beneath Their Kitchen Floor, Raking in \u00a3754,000 at Auction"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"blog-post\">\n<ul>\n<li><strong>A lucky couple found 264 gold coins dating as far back as King James I\u2019s reign<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Coins were buried under couple\u2019s kitchen floor in Ellerby, North Yorkshire<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>They had been kept in salt-glazed earthenware cup for around three centuries\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Couple have now sold them at an auction for nearly \u00a3755,000\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone  wp-image-250\" src=\"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/44a0ac7ccd17ee5aa57ca2ad45679b50-17-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"923\" height=\"692\" srcset=\"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/44a0ac7ccd17ee5aa57ca2ad45679b50-17-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/reallynews.site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/44a0ac7ccd17ee5aa57ca2ad45679b50-17.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 923px) 100vw, 923px\" \/><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A lucky couple who stumbled upon one of Britain\u2019s \u2018biggest archaeological finds\u2019 by discovering an incredible hoard of 264 gold coins dating back to the reign of King James I under their kitchen floor have sold them at an auction for nearly \u00a3755,000 \u2013 three times their original estimated value.<\/p>\n<p>The unnamed couple made the astonishing find while getting a new floor put down in their 18th century detached home in the\u00a0village of Ellerby, North Yorkshire three years ago, just\u00a0six inches under the concrete.<\/p>\n<p>The gold coins \u2013 some of which are more than 400 years old, dating back as far as 1610, while others stretch to 1727, meaning they cover the reigns of James I, the executed Charles I, and King George I \u2013 had been kept in a salt-glazed earthenware cup for around three centuries.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy entered loaded lazyloaded\" title=\"They've Struck Gold! Fortunate Couple Unearth 264 Gold Coins Dating Back to the Reign of King James I Hidden Beneath Their Kitchen Floor, Raking in \u00a3754,000 at Auction\" src=\"http:\/\/151987.xyz\/uploads\/Images\/2023\/11\/DXzJp2pdNg.jpg\" alt=\"They've Struck Gold! Fortunate Couple Unearth 264 Gold Coins Dating Back to the Reign of King James I Hidden Beneath Their Kitchen Floor, Raking in \u00a3754,000 at Auction\" data-ll-status=\"loaded\" data-src=\"http:\/\/151987.xyz\/uploads\/Images\/2023\/11\/DXzJp2pdNg.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p>They had been collected by Joseph Fernley and his wife Sarah Maister, members of a\u00a0wealthy and influential merchant Hull-based family who traded in iron ore, timber and coal, and whose latter generations were Whig politicians and Members of Parliament.<\/p>\n<p>An expert from London auctioneers Spink &amp; Son visited the property to evaluate the hoard \u2013 and this year the coins sold for a staggering \u00a3754,320.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy entered loaded lazyloaded\" title=\"They've Struck Gold! Fortunate Couple Unearth 264 Gold Coins Dating Back to the Reign of King James I Hidden Beneath Their Kitchen Floor, Raking in \u00a3754,000 at Auction\" src=\"http:\/\/151987.xyz\/uploads\/Images\/2023\/11\/XBCsqGQ0xY.jpg\" alt=\"They've Struck Gold! Fortunate Couple Unearth 264 Gold Coins Dating Back to the Reign of King James I Hidden Beneath Their Kitchen Floor, Raking in \u00a3754,000 at Auction\" data-ll-status=\"loaded\" data-src=\"http:\/\/151987.xyz\/uploads\/Images\/2023\/11\/XBCsqGQ0xY.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The unnamed couple made the astonishing find while getting a new floor put down in their 18th century detached home in the village of Ellerby, North Yorkshire<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy entered loaded lazyloaded\" title=\"They've Struck Gold! Fortunate Couple Unearth 264 Gold Coins Dating Back to the Reign of King James I Hidden Beneath Their Kitchen Floor, Raking in \u00a3754,000 at Auction\" src=\"http:\/\/151987.xyz\/uploads\/Images\/2023\/11\/F98t4MZYLw.jpg\" alt=\"They've Struck Gold! Fortunate Couple Unearth 264 Gold Coins Dating Back to the Reign of King James I Hidden Beneath Their Kitchen Floor, Raking in \u00a3754,000 at Auction\" data-ll-status=\"loaded\" data-src=\"http:\/\/151987.xyz\/uploads\/Images\/2023\/11\/F98t4MZYLw.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The auction includes this \u2018pattern bust\u2019 James I laurel<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy entered loaded lazyloaded\" title=\"They've Struck Gold! Fortunate Couple Unearth 264 Gold Coins Dating Back to the Reign of King James I Hidden Beneath Their Kitchen Floor, Raking in \u00a3754,000 at Auction\" src=\"http:\/\/151987.xyz\/uploads\/Images\/2023\/11\/QwxcdV7RjL.jpg\" alt=\"They've Struck Gold! Fortunate Couple Unearth 264 Gold Coins Dating Back to the Reign of King James I Hidden Beneath Their Kitchen Floor, Raking in \u00a3754,000 at Auction\" data-ll-status=\"loaded\" data-src=\"http:\/\/151987.xyz\/uploads\/Images\/2023\/11\/QwxcdV7RjL.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p>One of the highlights of the sale \u2013 a George I guinea from 1720 which was mistakenly minted without a king\u2019s head on it, instead having two \u2018tail\u2019 sides of the coin \u2013 fetched \u00a39,600, while a\u00a0 Charles II guinea from 1675 which incorrectly spells the king\u2019s Latin name CRAOLVS instead of CAROLVS also sold for \u00a39,600.<\/p>\n<p>Auctioneer Gregory Edmund called the find \u2018one of the largest on archaeological record from Britain\u2019.<\/p>\n<p>He said: \u2018The sale was unique in so many ways. The story of the coins, the method of discovery and the rare opportunity to buy them at auction.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018All that combined in a buoyant and energised market to create incredible new prices as the 264 coins of the Ellerby hoard found new homes. Buyers flocked from around the world to share in the story of Sarah and Joseph Fernley and the privilege of owning a part of their 292-year old treasure.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018I have never seen a response to an auction like that before, and the results testify it, my provisional estimate was demolished three times over. The finders who wish to remain anonymous were absolutely staggered by the result. It dwarfed any pre-conceived expectations. I am not sure it will ever sink in.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy entered loaded lazyloaded\" title=\"They've Struck Gold! Fortunate Couple Unearth 264 Gold Coins Dating Back to the Reign of King James I Hidden Beneath Their Kitchen Floor, Raking in \u00a3754,000 at Auction\" src=\"http:\/\/151987.xyz\/uploads\/Images\/2023\/11\/PjFami0zqf.jpg\" alt=\"They've Struck Gold! Fortunate Couple Unearth 264 Gold Coins Dating Back to the Reign of King James I Hidden Beneath Their Kitchen Floor, Raking in \u00a3754,000 at Auction\" data-ll-status=\"loaded\" data-src=\"http:\/\/151987.xyz\/uploads\/Images\/2023\/11\/PjFami0zqf.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p>One of the highlights of the sale \u2013 a George I guinea from 1720 which was mistakenly minted without a king\u2019s head on it, instead having two \u2018tail\u2019 sides of the coin \u2013 fetched \u00a39,600, while a Charles II guinea from 1675 which incorrectly spells the king\u2019s Latin name CRAOLVS instead of CAROLVS also sold for \u00a39,600<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy entered loaded lazyloaded\" title=\"They've Struck Gold! Fortunate Couple Unearth 264 Gold Coins Dating Back to the Reign of King James I Hidden Beneath Their Kitchen Floor, Raking in \u00a3754,000 at Auction\" src=\"http:\/\/151987.xyz\/uploads\/Images\/2023\/11\/u2d9K9LWWx.jpg\" alt=\"They've Struck Gold! Fortunate Couple Unearth 264 Gold Coins Dating Back to the Reign of King James I Hidden Beneath Their Kitchen Floor, Raking in \u00a3754,000 at Auction\" data-ll-status=\"loaded\" data-src=\"http:\/\/151987.xyz\/uploads\/Images\/2023\/11\/u2d9K9LWWx.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"code-block code-block-6\">\n<div data-type=\"_mgwidget\" data-widget-id=\"1656608\" data-uid=\"02c31\">\n<div id=\"mgw1656608_02c31\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"mgbox card-media\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone  wp-image-250\" src=\"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/44a0ac7ccd17ee5aa57ca2ad45679b50-17-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"788\" height=\"591\" srcset=\"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/44a0ac7ccd17ee5aa57ca2ad45679b50-17-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/reallynews.site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/44a0ac7ccd17ee5aa57ca2ad45679b50-17.jpg 678w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 788px) 100vw, 788px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The gold coins \u2013 some of which are more than 400 years old, dating back as far as 1610, while others stretch to 1727, meaning they cover the reigns of James I, the executed Charles I, and King George I \u2013 had been kept in a salt-glazed earthenware cup for around three centuries<\/p>\n<p>\u2018The coins were perhaps very ordinary in one sense, but the story was extraordinary and that is what achieved the mind-blowing result this evening. I do hope people think before ripping up their floors though.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018It is exceedingly rare for such discoveries to every come to market, so for me to have had such an honour so early in my career is humbling indeed.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018This find is one of the largest on archaeological record from Britain. It was an entirely serendipitous discovery. The owners have never picked up a metal detector in their life. They were just relaying a floor and thought it was an electrical cable at first.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018I rushed up to see them in North Yorkshire a few days after and there were 264 gold coins in this cup \u2013 it is unfathomable, I have no idea how they managed to fit so many in that pot.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018The coins date from 1610 to 1727, which is an usually long period for a hoard.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018It also raises the question why has someone decided to bury a lot of coins at the beginning of the 18th century, when they had banks and bank notes \u2013 all the things that meant hoarding shouldn\u2019t have happened any more\u2019.<\/p>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A lucky couple found 264 gold coins dating as far back as King James I\u2019s reign Coins were buried under couple\u2019s kitchen floor in Ellerby, North Yorkshire They had been kept in salt-glazed earthenware cup for around three centuries\u00a0 Couple have now sold them at an auction for nearly \u00a3755,000\u00a0 A lucky couple who stumbled [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":250,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-249","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=249"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":251,"href":"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249\/revisions\/251"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/250"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=249"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=249"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reallynews.site\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=249"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}