The Towton torcs are a pair of gold bracelets from

Towton Towton is a small village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Selby District of North Yorkshire, England. It was historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire until 1974. History In 2010 and 2011 a pair of gold torcs dating ...

, North Yorkshire, England, dating from the later

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

Discovery

The

torc A torc, also spelled torq or torque, is a large rigid or stiff neck ring in metal, made either as a single piece or from strands twisted together. The great majority are open at the front, although some had hook and ring closures and a few had ...

s were found by metal detectorists in a stream in 2010 and 2011.

Description

Both torcs are gold alloys and formed from a twisted wire with looped terminals. The first torc discovered comprised a twisted wire of two strands, the second had four strands. The first torc measured in diameter, weighed 67.7g. It had a metal content of 80-84% gold; 12-14% silver; and at least 4% copper.

Acquisition and display

After being declared as

treasure Treasure (from la, thesaurus from Greek language ''thēsauros'', "treasure store") is a concentration of wealth — often originating from ancient history — that is considered lost and/or forgotten until rediscovered. Some jurisdictions leg ...

, the

Yorkshire Museum The Yorkshire Museum is a museum in York, England. It was opened in 1830, and has five permanent collections, covering biology, geology, archaeology, numismatics and astronomy. History The museum was founded by the Yorkshire Philosophical Soci ...

launched a public funding campaign to raise the £60,000 required to purchase the torcs. The torcs were acquired by the museum in November 2013.

References

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External links

The Towton Torcs on Google Arts&CultureYorkshire Museum collection highlights: IRON AGE GOLD TORCS
2010 in England Metal detecting finds in England History of North Yorkshire Collections of the Yorkshire Museum Treasure troves in England Archaeological sites in North Yorkshire Treasure troves of the Iron Age Torcs Ancient Celtic metalwork 2010 archaeological discoveries 2011 archaeological discoveries