Archaeology
There has been a substantial increase in hoards found over the last twenty years due to the affordability of metal detectors. The Treasure Act and Portable Antiquities scheme has facilitated the acquisition of finds in local as well as national museums. The coin hoards have been intriguing and have been displayed once conservation was carried out.
The Furness Hoard is a Viking hoard that was discovered by a metal detectorist in 2011 and purchased by the Dock Museum in 2012. It consists of a mix of Viking coins, ingots, silver fragments and Anglo-Saxon coins. It would have been buried after 955 AD which is a comparably late date. The objects all required cleaning before going on display in the Stone Axe, Blood Axe, Conquest gallery. This nationally-important hoard was purchased thanks to donations from the Furness Maritime Trust and Tarmac as well as grants from the V&A Purchase Fund and the Headley Trust.
The Urswick Hoard is an usual find for this area. It is a late Bronze Age hoard consisting of a gold bracelet, three gold penannular lock-rings and a fragment of a looped socketed axe. They were found in 2017 and purchased with funds from the Furness Maritime Trust, V&A Purchase Fund and the Headley Trust. The hoard had overlying sand and silt on the surface, which was removed, as well as a black corrosion crust.