Government's treasure trove map raises the prospect of golddiggers

A tenfold increase in the discoveries of buried treasure has fuelled fears among MPs that important archaeological sites could be swamped by amateur fortune-hunters.

A tenfold increase in the discoveries of buried treasure has fuelled fears among MPs that important archaeological sites could be swamped by amateur fortune-hunters.

A record haul of valuables, including Roman gold, Viking silver and ancient coins, was found in Britain last year by part-time enthusiasts using metal detectors. About 250 discoveries of gold and silver more than 300 years old earned hunters hundreds of thousands of pounds in "treasure trove" payments last year.

The finds included two late Bronze Age gold neck-rings, uncovered in Chickerell, Dorset and worth £110,000, and a medieval gold pendant with a portrait of Christ discovered in Coundon, Warwickshire. Ten years ago only about 25 finds were reported each year.

A treasure map of Britain, published tomorrow by Chris Smith, the Culture Secretary, will pinpoint where the biggest finds were made and how much they are worth.

But some MPs have warned that the map will serve only to attract flocks of amateur hunters from around the world. Ronnie Fearn, Liberal Democrat tourism spokesman and a member of the House of Commons Culture Select Committee, said the location of the finds should be concealed by the Government.

"There is a real danger that a network of plunderers will be set up and in no time at all we will have hordes of people, not only from this country, descending on areas which have yielded buried treasure," he said. "I am sure that in a few days we will see bottle-diggers looking for relics."

The treasure map shows that Norfolk, Suffolk, Wiltshire and North Yorkshire yielded the most treasure last year. Durham and Herefordshire were the least successful counties for treasure hunters in England. Most of the finds were from the medieval and post-medieval period, although the bulk of gold and silver coins were Roman.

The majority were found by treasure hunters with metal detectors. Only 5 per cent of the finds - including the Anglo-Saxon grave of a warrior in Eriswell Suffolk - were the result of archaeological digs. Accidental discoveries by farmers ploughing their fields or walkers accounted for 5 per cent of the treasure reported last year.

The report on treasure trove will also show that a group of six silver Anglo-Saxon strap ends, made about AD850, found near York, has been bought by the Yorkshire Museum for £18,000.

A hoard of 9,238 Roman silver denarii from the 1st to 3rd centuries AD, dug up in Shapwick, Somerset, was bought by the Somerset County Museum for £265,000.

In Carnforth, Lancashire, treasure hunters uncovered a small Viking hoard of Islamic silver coins and scrap silver made about AD950.

In Bamburgh, Northumberland, treasure seekers dug up 253 Anglo-Saxon silver coins dating from AD850. The coins were bought by Newcastle's Museum of Antiquities for £2,850. And the British Museum paid £50,000 for a silver-gilt statuette of a saint, dating from AD1300, uncovered near Buntingford, Hertfordshire

One of the most spectacular finds was a rare Anglo-Saxon gold seal matrix bearing the name Baldehild. She was said to have been the bride of King Clovis II of France about AD650. The seal, worth £60,000, has been acquired by Norwich Museum.

The amount of reported buried treasure has increased so dramatically the Government is planning to review the Treasure Act to give government officials more help in dealing with the caseload.

Under present law, finds of gold and silver more than 300 years old are official trove and have to be valued by the government's Treasure Valuation committee, under the 1996 Treasure Act. A Whitehall source said: "The massive increase in reporting of treasurehelps us to understand our shared history. We are looking at improving the efficiency in dealing with caseloads and how reports are made. The review reports back in the spring."