Britain's 'most important archeological' discovery found in desk drawer

Thousands of tiny gold pins which lay hidden in a desk drawer for 40 years have been described as one of Britian's most important archeological finds.

By Urmee Khan
Last Updated: 1:20AM BST 23 Oct 2008

The artifacts were part of a dagger buried with a warrior chief, near Stonehenge, nearly 4,000 years ago.
Archeologists said they were known as 'the work of the gods'.
The pinhead-sized studs form an intricate pattern on the handle of a dagger, but archeologists failed to realise their significance when they excavated the burial mound in Wiltshire - known as Bush Barrow- in 1808.
Now they are to be re-united with other priceless artefacts unearthed at the site and put on show at the Wiltshire Heritage Museum in Devizes after Niall Sharples, a senior lecturer at Cardiff University turned out his predecessors' desk and discovered them in a film canister labelled Bush Barrow.
In the 1960s, the gold was taken away for examination by Professor Richard Atkinson, a Cardiff University archaeologist well known for his work at Stonehenge and nearby Silbury Hill.
Wiltshire Heritage Museum director David Dawson said: "We think he recognized what they were but then he died and they were rescued by his successor Professor John Evans who put them in a drawer in his desk. Professor Evans died in 2005 and the gold studs have now been found by Niall Sharples, who is going to return them to us."
The gold pins, thought to come from Ireland, were fashioned by craftsmen in Brittany, France, and inlaid in an intricate herringbone pattern into the handle of the ceremonial dagger, which had an eight inch bronze blade.
It is the richest and most important Bronze Age grave on the Salisbury Plain and in Britain, according to experts.
Stonehenge, which dates from 3000 BC, was a hugely important religious site and the Bush Barrow warrior was one of hundreds of chieftains buried nearby.
They have been united with the other priceless artefacts unearthed at the site, and can be seen at the Wiltshire Heritage Museum.
David Dawson, the Museum director, said: "It's an unbelievable find".
"The gold studs are remarkable evidence of the skill and craftsmanship of Bronze Age goldsmiths - quite rightly described as 'the work of the gods'"
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/3242724/Britains-most-important-archeological-discovery-found-in-desk-drawer.html