Wednesday, 12th October 2016: “Treasures Beneath Our Feet”
For the past 30 years Club Member,Felim O’Neill has been exploring fields in Co Tyrone and Hertfordshire with his metal detector looking for treasures beneath his feet. While working in London he was drawn to the mud banks along the Thames which lie exposed at low tide. From his large collection he put on display a variety of objects which he had found over the years and used photographs to illustrate many others. The time line for his collection begins with fossilsfrom the Jurassic period followed by Neolithic flint arrow heads, stone axes, and pottery shards. Among items unearthed from the banks of the Thames were several clay pipes and fragments of wig curlers. Iron Age brooches, Bronze Age swords, Medieval buckles, bells, weights and measures, testify to the breadth of his collection as do coins, musket balls, buttons and horse harness. All these and many more were carefully catalogued and dated in ways that show Felim is meticulous in his research. After answering many questions about his hobby, Felim was thanked for a fascinating talk by fellow Probus Member, Jim Alderdice