Many people would have taken the £3,000 payment for the piedfort and avoided any legal hassles. But what if something was more valuable to you than a sum of $10,000?
It’s hard to say what we would do in that situation. But it seems a bit harsh that a museum could harass someone’s life like that.
Where Is the Piedfort?
According to Ms. Harding, the piedfort had been misplaced. She held onto it for 14 years, but something happened to it sometime during the unfortunate turn of luck after taking it to the museum for an appraisal.
As far as anyone knew, it was, in fact, lost.
How Determined Was She to Keep It?
Throughout the trials and tribulation, the magistrate brought Ms. Harding, she believed she was in the right to keep her precious memento. She found it legally.
Treasure laws didn’t exist when she was nine and did not apply to a minor. And, for a person grieving such a horrendous loss, it is understandable that she would take a vigilante approach to maintaining what she felt was rightfully hers.
The Good News
The authorities finally stopped pestering the young woman about the tiny artifact.
This mean that they would not be able to examine the coin to discover its origin. It would continue to be a mystery.
Another Mystery
If Ms. Harding does have secret possession of the coin, what will she do with it? She knows the value if she decides to cash it in, but maybe she will keep it forever.
Perhaps she will pass it along to her children as a family heirloom. A permanent reminder of the dear matriarch they lost. But don’t tell anyone!