It’s no secret that Cumbria is a place of magic to hundreds of thousands across the world, but the beautiful county has also been discovered as a treasure hot-spot.

Out of the 1,000 discoveries of real-life treasure found throughout England and Wales last year, 12 of the rare and wonderful items were found in Cumbrian soil, bringing the total up to 37 discoveries in the area over the past three years.

Avid metal detectorists throughout the county took their finds to Cumbria Coroner’s Court – a requirement by law – after stumbling across the hidden gems.

And one treasure hunter who found a lot more than he bargained for on a regular trip out with his metal detector was Whitehaven man, Billy Vaughan.

The care worker came across a 22-carat gold bracelet in July last year, which was confirmed to be from the Bronze Age, dated between 900 and 700 BC – an amazing surprise for both Billy and Whitehaven museum, The Beacon.

The band was officially declared to be treasure by Coroner Kirsty Gomersal at Cockermouth Coroners Court in January.

Across England and Wales, 1,061 finds were reported last year – 6% more than the year before – and 380 inquests held, with more than 90% returning a verdict of treasure.

To fit the definition of "treasure", under the Treasure Act 1997, the find must be older than 300 years and be at least 10% precious metal, such as gold or silver.

Examples include coins, jewellery and prehistoric metallic objects.

Lincolnshire was the best area for pieces branded treasure-status worthy, with 89 finds last year alone.

In contrast, no treasure at all was found in 23 areas.

Ian Richardson, treasure registrar at the British Museum, said: “The purpose of the Treasure Act is to enable important archaeological objects to be acquired by museums, for the benefit of all.

“It is pleasing to see local museums interested in acquiring a number of these finds if they are declared Treasure.”

Anyone fortunate enough to discover something they think is treasure must report their finding to the coroner within two weeks, so the court can hold an inquest to decide who should get the to keep it.

Failure to do so can result in an unlimited fine or up to three months in prison.

With metal detectorists being given the go-ahead to get searching again as lockdown lifts, Mr Richardson is urging everyone to continue to follow the code of practice for responsible metal detecting, and report each and every one of their discoveries, including treasure.