Cumberland Council said that decision was up to Historic England, while National Grid said it would consider historical finds in its appraisal of the site.<\/p>\n
Daniels and Andy Crammond travelled from Scotland to attend a metal detecting rally when they made the discover.<\/p>\n
Daniels says initially they hadn’t found anything out of the ordinary, only a “couple of old coins and loads of junk.”<\/p>\n
But when the pair uncovered the gold torcs they felt as though they’d hit the jackpot.<\/p>\n
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The three torcs would have been worn on the upper arm and were high status items [Lothian Relics Metal Detecting]<\/p>\n
The rally was organised by Lothian Relics Metal Detecting which had been invited by campaign group North Carlisle Against the Substation and Pylons.<\/p>\n
Organiser Gary Robertson says the torcs would have been worn on the arm and described having the chance to hold them as “incredible.”<\/p>\n
“We were expecting to find some Roman or medieval stuff, but never three Bronze Age torcs.”<\/p>\n
He believed the items should give the National Grid pause for thought, adding: “I don’t think they can come and build a substation on land that is historical; there must be another avenue.”<\/p>\n
‘Rare’ finds<\/p>\n
Dr Jim Morris from the University of Lancashire said the discovery was “spectacular.”<\/p>\n
“[Often] when we find torcs, we’ll find a fragment,” he said.<\/p>\n
“But to find a complete one is rare, and three complete ones is even rarer.”<\/p>\n
He thinks the torcs were likely placed in the ground intentionally, either as part of a burial or cremation or in a hoard for safekeeping.<\/p>\n
Archaeologists have long recognised Cumbria’s connections to Ireland during the Viking period, but now Morris says the link may have formed much earlier.<\/p>\n
“There’s an awful lot of material coming in across the Irish Sea, into Cumbria and moving down the Eden Valley,” he said.<\/p>\n
“Going up the Firth and into into the Eden River is probably a major route in prehistory,”<\/p>\n
Pre-Bronze Age discoveries during the construction of Carlisle’s Northern Development Route and a solid gold torc found in Whitehaven<\/a> support this theory.<\/p>\n David Coulthard, chair of Westlinton Parish Council, said the latest discovery made it “obvious” the location is “not fit for a substation.”<\/p>\n “We feel clearly this site is out of reach given the historic significance of these finds,” he said.<\/p>\n A spokesperson for National Grid said it carries out expert heritage assessments of potential sites and “any verified finds would be carefully considered within our appraisal”.<\/p>\n Historic England said it had not received any requests to assess the site where the torcs were found.<\/p>\n Follow BBC Cumbria on X<\/a>, Facebook<\/a>, Nextdoor<\/a> and Instagram<\/a>. <\/p>\n Related storiesRelated internet links