Richard McCaie, a retired teacher from Braunton in the UK, was doing some landscaping (as retired people do) when he found a gold ring buried about 10 inches deep in the back garden of his 16th-century English farmhouse.
McCaie was planting a ceanothus bush when he found it, so maybe that detail is crucial for you to know, just in case you are looking to plant a ceanothus bush or digging for 17th-century artifacts and needed to know the appropriate depth for either activity.
The ring, which turned out to be from the 17th century, has a family coat of arms that was able to be traced back to the Cokceram family, who lived in the area during the time that the ring was first made.
Nigel Mills, artifacts and antiquities consultant at Noonans auction house said,
The ring dates from 1620 and very likely belonged to Humphrey Cockeram of Cullompton in Devon. The ring bears a seal with the coat of arms of the Cockeram family and the initials H C behind. Humphrey was recorded as the head of the family in 1620 and lived at Hillersdon Manor in the early 17th century which is 42 miles east of where it was found.
The ring will come up for auction tomorrow, March 14th, where it is expected to fetch up to 12,000 pounds.
We were amazed when Noonans told us the value and we are planning to use the proceeds from the sale to help our children.
