Norfolk woman finds treasure chest during beach clean-up

Jennie Fitzgerald found the treasure chest during a beach clean-up event

A woman who found a treasure chest during a beach clean-up event said she was "still in shock".

Jennie Fitzgerald found the wooden chest, filled with coins, gems and other items, between Cart Gap and Happisburgh in Norfolk on 20 March.

The 38-year-old said she had been in contact with the county council's finds liaison officer about the ownership of the items.

Mrs Fitzgerald, from Norwich, said the situation was "really surreal".

"It's been a crazy time," she said.

"I'm still in shock."

Mrs Fitzgerald said her children thought the family would be "rich and famous" after the discovery

Mrs Fitzgerald, a medical secretary at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, said she spotted a piece of wood that "had an unusual shape to it" as she was about to leave the beach.

"As I moved over to it I realised it was quite firmly in the sand," she said.

"I noticed it had this brass lock on it and it was a treasure chest."

Mrs Fitzgerald said she thought the chest was from the Victorian era as it had "VR and a little crown" on the lock.

Mrs Fitzgerald said it took about an hour to go through all the items

Mrs Fitzgerald then telephoned her husband who met her on the beach and the couple returned to their relatives' caravan, where they had been staying for the weekend with their two children.

"I said 'look everyone - mum found a treasure chest!'," she said.

• Largest hoard of gold Anglo-Saxon coins unearthed

• Roman treasure returns to town where it was found

• Mystery treasure 'could be sword-related'

The family managed to lever open the chest after scrubbing away sand from it.

"Coins started dropping out, then the gems and the pocket watch," Mrs Fitzgerald said.

"The last thing to come out was a big perfume bottle.

"I was in shock, I was just sat there staring at everyone."

Mrs Fitzgerald said the council's finds liaison officer was going to arrange for the items to be assessed and "trace and work out who the chest belonged to".