In early May 2016, modern day Treasure Hunter Vincent Thurkettle announced the discovery of a 3 ounce Gold Nugget in the sea just off the coast of Anglesey. This is the largest Gold Nugget ever found in the UK and was actually discovered in 2012 but kept secret whilst the area was searched for more treasure.

The origin of this unlikely find almost certainly dates back over 150 years to a tragic night in 1859.

On the night of the 25^th to the 26^th October 1859 the Royal Charter steam clipper, one of the fastest ships of the time, was returning to Liverpool from Melbourne Australia at the end of a two month voyage. On board were over 100 crew and almost 400 passengers. Many of the passengers were miners returning from the Australian Gold Fields and the ship’s hold contained many boxes of Gold. Additional quantities of Gold carried by the passengers in their baggage and clothing took the total value of the Gold on board to over £300,000, which could be worth over £120million today.

As the Royal Charter crossed the Irish Sea she was caught without warning in the worst storm of the 19^th Century. Battered by hurricane force winds, the ship was driven towards the rocky northern shore of Anglesey. Anchors were dropped to stop the ship but the force of the storm snapped the anchor cables and the Royal Charter was driven onto a sandbank just yards offshore.

As dawn broke, the proximity of the coast gave hope of rescue and a line was quickly rigged to the shore but Mother Nature was to have the final say. A rising tide lifted the Royal Charter off the sandbank and she was broken on the rocky shoreline.

There were only 40 survivors from the wreck. Every woman and child was lost as they were being kept below decks for safety due to the violent storm. Over 200 ships were lost or severely damaged around the UK in that single night.

In the last 150 years there have been many attempts to recover the Royal Charter’s fabulously valuable cargo with this latest find being the largest item discovered.

Due to the proximity of the find to the wreck site the Gold Nugget is now the property of The Crown and is likely to find a home on display in a museum.

Mr Thurkettle expects to receive a finder’s fee but was sad to part with the 23 carat Nugget, saying, “It has broken my heart to part with the nugget but I think it is important that it ends up in a museum for everyone to see.”

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