Hertfordshire Bronze Age axe hoard found by Milly, aged 13

MillyImage source, Theo Chikomba/BBC
Image caption,

Milly managed to unearth about 20 items in the Hertfordshire field

Say 'hello' to Milly - the teenage treasure hunter!

The 13-year-old has uncovered a hoard of Bronze Age axes on one of her first metal-detecting trips.

"It was my third time out and I didn't quite know what I was doing," Milly said.

Archaeologists were called in to excavate the entire hoard, which will be sent to the British Museum, London.

Image source, Colin Hardwick
Image caption,

Dozens of axe heads and other Bronze Age artefacts were uncovered by the young metal detectorist

Milly, who's from Suffolk, had only recently taken up her father's favourite hobby of metal-detecting.

The two of them were on an organised trip when they came across the first axe head.

They were investigating a field near Royston, Hertfordshire, when she made the find - the first of 65 artefacts dating from about 1300BC.

When her dad dug out the first one, Milly said they joked it might be an axe - and it was.

"I got a signal and yelled at my dad and when he started digging he went 'this could be an axe', and he was joking around about it," said Milly.

Image source, Theo Chikomba/BBC
How does a metal detector work?

A metal detector is an electronic instrument which detects the presence of metal nearby.

Metal detectors are useful for finding metal objects buried underground.

They often consist of a handheld unit with a sensor probe which can be swept over the ground or other objects.

If the sensor comes near a piece of metal this is indicated by a tone in earphones, or a needle moving on an indicator.

Milly said if she was offered any money for her find, it would be split equally with the landowner.

Asked what she might spend it on, Milly said: "My dad's got this thing that we call a 'diggie tool' - like a really small shovel - I would love to get one of those."

Altogether, they unearthed about 20 items, but the site had to be covered up until archaeologists could excavate it professionally the following day.

By the time they finished, they had a hoard of 65 Bronze Age items.

Now Milly says she plans to go out with her dad every Sunday in the hope of finding another hoard!