'Beautifully made' Bronze Age gold torc fragment found at Erpingham

The find was made in a field near Erpingham, Norfolk, in September

A tiny, twisted fragment of a gold torc made thousands of years ago has been uncovered by a metal detectorist.

The "beautifully made" Bronze Age piece was made from a twisted gold rod just 0.09in (2.4mm) thick and had been bent into an 0.43in (11mm) loop.

The piece was found in a field near Erpingham, Norfolk, in September and dates to between 1400-1100BC.

It could have been intended for reuse, or as "a neat little offering to the gods", said historian Helen Geake.

A slender twisted bar, it was bent into a spiral in the Middle Bronze Age and is dated to between 1400-1100BC

The thin bar was bent into a spiral of two full turns.

An unusual feature of the fragment is it is a triangular bar-twisted torc which is "much less common than four-flanged examples".

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Dr Geake, the Norfolk finds liaison officer, said: "It's just so cleverly done and emphasises how good Bronze Age craftsmen were with gold.

"It's quite tiny and you have to get your eye in to look at the end and see it's not any old twisted piece of metal work, it's really beautifully made."

Dr Helen Geake said it shows how "incredibly good" Bronze Age people were at working gold

Metal detecting and the law

• No search can begin until permission has been given by the landowner

• All finds belong to the landowner

• Any find in England, Wales and Northern Ireland that is more than 300 years old, made of gold or silver, or found with gold or silver artefacts, could be treasure under the 1996 Treasure Act

• These must be reported to the appropriate county finds liaison officer

Source: Portable Antiquities Scheme

Similar pieces bent into small loops have been found over the years, but it is not clear what their purpose was.

Dr Geake said: "It's been tidily tightened and folded.

"Maybe it was to put back into a pot to be melted down and used to create something new - or it could be a neat little offering to the gods."

The find was declared treasure by Norfolk Coroner's Court and Norwich Castle Museum is hoping to acquire it.