The Chessington Hoard
An amazing discovery was made in Chessington in 1998 by two people using a metal detecting machine. Just below the surface, about 4 inches down, they found what appeared to be a gold coin in very good condition. Over the next few months they searched the area again and discovered in total six gold coins. All were similar to each other though of varying sizes.
The Coins
Then began a voyage of discovery. The curator of Roman and Celtic coins in the British Museum examined the coins and confirmed that they were from the Iron Age, from around 150 to 50 BC, just before Julius Caesar's failed invasion of Britain in 54 BC.
It is likely that the coins were made, not in Britain, but probably in Northern France or Belgium (Gaul). They would have been extremely precious, being made of at least 70% gold. It is possible they were used for trading, although there was not an established currency system in Iron Age Britain. They might have been used as a store of wealth, like savings or an investment. Another possibility is that they were given as high status gifts among kings and nobles.
The coins depict a picture of the Ancient Greek God Apollo on one side (the obverse), and a horse and wheel denoting a chariot on the other (the reverse). They are similar to a gold coin of Philip of Macedon dating from 359 to 336 BC. Coins of a similar type and age as the Chessington Hoard were commonly copied from Macedonian gold 'staters'. Other similar coins of around the same date have been discovered in Britain, many in London and the South East.
Treasure
Kingston's 'treasure trove' rights date from a Royal Charter of 1481. The coins were declared 'treasure' at a Kingston Coroners' Court and were subsequently purchased by Kingston Museum for just over £4,000 with assistance from the National Art Collections Fund. They are now on display in Kingston Museum.
Iron Age discoveries in Kingston
In the Iron Age, Britain was mainly farmland with numerous small farmsteads scattered across the country. There were hillforts too, which acted as centres of power and strongholds. A farmstead was found in Malden in the 1940s and more evidence was discovered there in 1991, including a large boundary ditch and pottery fragments. There was evidence of huts and beaten gravel floors, fire hearths and central support posts. In the same year evidence of an Iron Age house was found in nearby Tolworth. This suggests that there were a number of small settlements, probably farms that were connected to each other. It is likely that they traded with Northern Gaul, Belgium and Germany. There is a model of an Iron Age Village in Kingston Museum.
This is what we know. But there are still many more questions that need answering.