Treasure in disguise: Family finds hoard of 17th-century coins under kitchen floor, gets $75,000 at auction

Finding treasures in a real-life setting might only sound like one of Captain Hook's pirate and burglary campaigns from popular novels, but what if this is a real story - in fact, one where a family found centuries-old coins in their home while renovating it?

Incidents like these often compel us to think, who buried this? Why? And what secrets did they take to the grave? Such discoveries often lead us to desperate times when hiding wealth was a gamble for life itself. So what exactly happened here? Let's find out!

When a kitchen renovation turns into a treasure hunt

Betty and Robert Fooks were just trying to make their 17th-century longhouse at South Poorton Farm in West Dorset, England, more spacious during renovation. In 2019, Robert swung his pickaxe to lower the concrete floor by nearly two feet for better headroom. Instead, he hit a glazed pottery bowl packed with over 1,000 silver and gold coins from the 1600s. A report by Popular Mechanics explains how this "Poorton Coin Hoard" stunned the couple, who quickly gathered the spill into a bucket.

The coins had figures of monarchs like James I, Charles I, Elizabeth I, and Philip and Mary. The hoard also includes gold unit coins valued at one pound, along with silver half crowns, shillings, and sixpences. According to Live Science, experts at the British Museum dated the deposit to 1642–1644, during the early years of the First English Civil War.

What did the situation during the Civil War look like?

From 1642 to 1651, England faced a bitter civil war between Parliamentarians and Royalists who supported King Charles I. Dorset experienced significant troop movements, and Lyme Regis withstood a major Royalist siege in 1644, supported by supplies from smugglers.

Families such as the Sydenhams switched parties to protect their lands from seizure. Waseem Ahmed, a history expert at University College London, explained to Live Science, “If you were a Royalist or suspected Royalist, you could have your estates sequestrated (seized) by the Parliamentary side and vice versa.”

Troops often raided homes for food and valuables, causing the locals to hide coins in walls or floors for safekeeping. Many never returned to recover them, leaving treasures like the Poorton hoard buried for centuries.

The family sent it for auction

The Fooks family reported the discovery as required by law and sent the coins to the British Museum for cleaning and examination. Experts determined that the coins showed no signs of disturbance, indicating a single hasty burial. The collection was auctioned on April 23, 2023, at Duke’s Auctioneers, where it sold for more than $75,000 overall, among which a single Charles I gold coin fetched $6,260. Smithsonian Magazine reports that the coins represented rulers from Edward VI to Charles I.

Betty Fooks told The Guardian, “One evening… my husband was digging with a pickaxe when he called to say they’ve found something.”

So how did the coins get there?

Rural Poorton folks likely stashed this for safety amid marauding troops. Betty told The Guardian, “If we hadn’t lowered the floor, they would still be hidden there... I presume the person intended to retrieve them but never got the chance.” The war claimed lives, including Charles I's execution in 1649.

And this became one among the tales of Civil War desperation.