Honesty Proves Costly in Stunning Garden Gold Discovery
A resident of Neuville-sur-Saône, a suburb of Lyon in France, faces the bitter prospect of receiving absolutely nothing after reporting the discovery of a gold bar haul valued at approximately £616,000 that he unearthed in his own garden. The unidentified man, who stumbled upon the plastic-wrapped treasure while digging, fulfilled his legal obligation by immediately alerting the local authorities to his remarkable find.
The Legal Conundrum of Buried Treasure
Local councillor Patrick Rachas publicly commended the finder for his forthrightness, even joking that the incident made him want to 'start digging myself.' However, the situation quickly turned complicated. The council involved local police, who successfully traced the origins of the bars. Investigations revealed the gold had been legally acquired and manufactured around twenty years ago.
According to Antoine Béguin, a lawyer specialising in treasure law, the honest discoverer is unlikely to receive any financial compensation for his actions. Béguin explained to the Times: 'He will probably be entitled to nothing. The heirs of the original owner will probably come forward.' The presumed owner is believed to be a previous occupant of the property, meaning the current homeowner may be forced to surrender the entire stash to that person's heirs.
A Stark Contrast to Other Treasure Finds
This case presents a stark contrast to another recent British treasure discovery. Earlier this month, a couple from Milford-on-Sea, Hampshire, celebrated after a hoard of 70 Tudor gold coins they found while weeding sold for £467,000. Their discovery, which included coins dating back to the reign of King Henry VI in the 1420s and others from Henry VIII's era, was in a remarkable state of preservation.
Some of the Tudor coins contained the initials of two of Henry VIII's wives, Catherine of Aragon and Jane Seymour. Historians believe this hoard was likely buried for safekeeping by a wealthy church cleric during the tumultuous period of Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries.
Béguin clarified the legal position for the French gold bars, stating: 'If it is proved that whoever hid the gold bars had no heirs, the treasure would revert to the State.' This leaves the honest finder in a legal limbo, potentially watching a fortune slip through his fingers despite doing everything by the book.
