Metal detectorist makes the 'discovery of a lifetime' after unearthing a nugget of gold shaped like Britain

A detectorist has made the 'discovery of a lifetime' after unearthing a nugget of gold shaped like Britain.

Jonathan Needham, 54, found the gold on the Staffordshire and Derbyshire border and believes it was formed naturally beneath the ground there.

The nugget - shaped like England, Wales and Scotland - is almost 3cm in length and over 1cm wide and weighs 10.3 grams.

Retired tree surgeon and treasure seeker Jonathan says his 'Holy Grail' find on November 1 is his 'most interesting ever'.

He is now in the process of confirming whether the piece of gold is natural or smelted.

The nugget as scrap could be worth around £800 - but if it is evidence of gold mining in the Midlands in the past it will be worth much more.

History buff Jonathan said: 'I really could not believe it. I have dug gold before but I was not expecting to find a nugget of gold.

'When you are detecting in England to find a nugget of gold is exceptional.

'When I dug it I could see it was gold coloured and I knew straight away that it was gold - but I thought it could have been some bit of jewelry but it is not.

'It was quite funny - when I started cleaning it and turned it around I thought 'that looks just like England'.

'It is rare enough to find a piece of gold but to find one that looks exactly like England is crazy.

'The jury is out whether its natural or whether its part of a smelting process and the gold was smelted and then dropped.

'People are saying it's natural - if it is natural then I found this on the Derbyshire Staffordshire borders. It could open up a whole can of worms.

'Some experts are going to have to look into it and if it is natural gold it is going to be worth a lot more money than scrap gold.

'I am hoping it is a natural nugget and if it is it would be extraordinary because not many get found in this country.

'If it is natural gold it will be one in a life time.'

He is now hoping to return to the same area to see if he can discover more similar finds there.

He added: 'I will be checking out the area very carefully to see if I can pull any more out - it is an amazing find.'

Last year Jonathan discovered a 'one in a billion' Bronze Age artefact after finding a 3,000-year-old dress or cloak fastener on a patch of land in Staffs.

Jonathan wanted to be a treasure hunter decades ago after watching TV about finds.

He is passionate about ancient history and loves watching The Detectorists.

But he was always too busy working, so had to wait until after arthritis forced him to go part-time to take up the hobby.

And now his hobby has turned into a profession.

'This is what I do. I am a treasure seeker I don't do anything else - this is my job,' concluded Jonathan.