Part of the Bruton Museum Festival of History and Heritage 2023

A talk to celebrate the publication of a new book, 50 Finds From Somerset: Objects from the Portable Antiquities Scheme (Amberley Publishing, 2023), exploring the history of Somerset through 50 finds. The objects are all recent discoveries made by members of the public and reported through the Portable Antiquities Scheme. These finds, and thousands of others recorded by the Scheme, are helping us re-write our understanding of Somerset’s past. The author, Laura Burnett, will explore the stories of some of the finds in the book in more detail, and show you a few additional favourites that she had to leave out.

Laura Burnett was the Finds Liaison Officer in Somerset for over ten years, making the first record of many exciting discoveries. She got to identify and research thousands of objects found by the public, just a few of which feature in this new book. She is particularly interested in coinage, medieval and post medieval finds and understanding how money worked, or didn’t, in the past. Her current research at the University of Exeter focusses on locally issued tokens and how they were used and understood. Probably her favourite find she has recorded was a Roman chicken.

Click here for tickets - member discount available - or buy them on the door at the event.