A METAL detectorist who unearthed a hoard of ancient coins and decided to keep some as a “memento” will have his metal detector destroyed, a court has ordered. Groundworker Shane Wood, 62, of Hanningfield Road, Great Baddow, found the treasure while on a walk in Chelmsford in September last year. Ashley Petchey, prosecuting, told Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court “avid birdwatcher” Wood saw a feather fall from a buzzard and noticed a gold item in the field where it landed. Wood went home to fetch his metal detector and made the discovery, placing the coins into a bin liner. Mr Petchey said the horde of 933 Iron Age gold Staters was “likely to be if not the largest then the second largest such find in Britain”.