8 August 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

‘Remarkable Archaeological Find’ Metal detectorist unearths Roman cavalry swords in North Cotswolds

Authorities announced Monday that two incredibly rare Roman cavalry swords were uncovered in the Cotswolds, England, during a metal detectorist rally.

The two Roman cavalry swords were found along with their wooden scabbards and fitments, according to a press release from the Cotswold District Council. There was also a broken copper alloy bowl discovered with the weaponry.

Fitments were discovered by Glenn Manning during a metal detectorist rally in the north of the Cotswolds.

The swords have been appraised by Professor Simon James from Leicester University who says that these weapons are middle imperial Roman swords, which are often referred to as a spatha.

Professor Simon James believes they were in use in the Roman world around the 160s, through the later second century and far into the third century AD.

The Roman cavalry swords (Image: Cotswold District Council)

Their length suggests that they were weapons intended for use on horseback. It was not illegal for civilians to own such weapons and to carry them for travelling because Roman provinces were plagued with banditry.

Professor James said: “In terms of parallels, I can’t think of finds of more than one sword being deposited in any similar circumstance from Roman Britain.

“The closest that springs to mind was a pair of similar swords found in Canterbury—with their owners, face down in a pit within the city walls, clearly a clandestine burial, almost certainly a double murder.”

Only four such swords have been found, according to a video shared by the Cotswold District Council.

“This new discovery shows what an incredibly deep history the Cotswolds has. People famously asked, ‘What have the Romans ever done for us?’” council member Paul Hodgkinson said of the discovery. “Well, they have just given us some amazing examples of weapons used almost 2000 years ago when Cirencester was the second biggest town in Britain. This is truly a remarkable archaeological find and I can’t wait for visitors to see them on display in the years to come.”

Soon after the discovery, Kurt Adams, a finds liaison officer, took the swords and other items to Corinium Museum in Cirencester for preservation. Historic England has arranged for the swords to go for further analysis under an X-ray.

An archaeological appraisal at the dig site in the north Cotswolds site may follow to help put the swords into context, as historians involved in the investigation are still unsure about how they ended up buried there.

Cotswolds District Council

Related Articles

Oldest Aboriginal pottery discovered in Far North Queensland

10 April 2024

10 April 2024

More than 2000 years ago, Aboriginal Australians were producing ceramics on a secluded island about 35 kilometers off the coast...

A 1,000-year-old burial chariot dating back to the Liao Dynasty, founded by the nomadic Khitan discovered in Inner Mongolia

8 August 2024

8 August 2024

Archaeologists from the Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region have discovered a hearse from...

Battle of the Egadi Islands: Rome’s deadly weapons discovered off Sicily

3 September 2021

3 September 2021

Underwater archaeologists from the Soprintendenza del Mare Regione Siciliana, RPM Nautical Foundation, and the Society for the Documentation of Submerged...

Archaeologists found gold coins from the time of Justinian the Great in Northern Bulgaria

3 September 2024

3 September 2024

Archaeologists have discovered five gold coins dating from the reign of Justinian the Great (483-565) in Debnevo, the largest village...

Glazed Bricks with Bull and Dragon Motifs Discovered at Persepolis

17 December 2021

17 December 2021

A team of Iranian and Italian archaeologists recently unearthed some glazed bricks bearing bull and dragon motifs in the ancient...

5500-year-old city gate unearthed in Israel -the earliest known in the Land of Israel-

15 August 2023

15 August 2023

The Israel Antiquities Authority announced on Tuesday that archaeologists have discovered the earliest known ancient gate in the land of...

Human blood proteins were found in the red paint on a 1,000-year-old gold mask from Peru

27 October 2021

27 October 2021

Traces of human blood have been discovered in the red paint that decorated a gold mask found on the remains...

Doune Pistols: The Spark That Ignited a Revolution Returns Home

5 May 2025

5 May 2025

A remarkable piece of Scottish history has returned to its roots as a collection of ten exquisite 18th-century pistols, crafted...

The first settlement of the Cimmerians in Anatolia may be Büklükale

7 June 2022

7 June 2022

Archaeologists estimated that the first settlement in Anatolia of the Cimmerians, who left Southern Ukraine before Christ (about 8th century...

Ritualistic Dog Burials Associated with the Goddess Gula Unearthed at the Harran Archaeological Site in Southeastern Türkiye

15 December 2024

15 December 2024

Excavations at the Harran archaeological site in Şanlıurfa, one of the world’s oldest settlements and listed on UNESCO’s Temporary World...

World’s Smallest Stegosaurus Track Found

14 March 2021

14 March 2021

The smallest trace of stegosaurus in the world that lived 155 million years ago was found. Stegosaurus, a herbivorous dinosaur,...

Storms uncover precious marble cargo from a 1,800-year-old Mediterranean shipwreck in Israel

15 May 2023

15 May 2023

Numerous rare marble artifacts have been found at the site of a 1,800-year-old shipwreck in shallow waters just 200 meters...

Polish archaeologists discovered new petroglyphs dating back to the 3rd century in Colorado

14 December 2023

14 December 2023

Archaeologists from the Jagiellonian University, southern Poland, have made a significant discovery of ancient indigenous paintings and carvings in the...

Mummy of Egyptian pharaoh Amenhotep ‘unwrapped’ for the first time in 3,500 years!

30 December 2021

30 December 2021

Egyptian scientists have digitally unwrapped the 3,500-year-old mummy of pharaoh Amenhotep I. For the first time, a team in Egypt...

1,500-year-old Byzantine artifacts found under a peach orchard in Turkey’s Iznik

27 January 2023

27 January 2023

In the world-famous historical city of Iznik, which was the capital of four civilizations, a farmer found coins and historical...