Man inspired by late wife discovers ‘Viking’ axe near Pershore

Detectorist Stephen Grey from Evesham has made his most impressive discovery to date, an axe head that could date back as far as 800AD.

Mr Grey, 54, moved to the town six years ago to marry his late wife Rachael, who died from cancer two years ago.

He says he was thinking of her when he made his latest discovery on a field outside Pershore.

“She always got most excited about finds I made locally because I also travel far and wide,” he said.

“I think she’d be very happy with this find.”

Mr Grey is joined on many of his searches by his late wife's 17-year-old dog, Buster (Image: Mr Grey is joined on many of his searches by his late wife's 17-year-old dog, Buster)

As it approached 7pm on Friday September 23, and with his late wife’s 17-year-old dog Buster wanting to go home, Mr Grey was all but ready to give up when his detector came up with an iron signal.

He said: “Nobody in the hobby wants to dig iron, it’s not what we look for.

“I dug it up anyway and 15 inches down found a Viking axe dating from 800AD to 950AD.”

Mr Grey said that it was one of his two most prized discoveries, along with a Roman lead statue.

Just before discovering the axe, Mr Grey dug up a gold gilded heart whilst looking at Broadway Tower in the distance, where Rachael used to work, and in the past has found treasures from Celtic, Roman, Saxon and medieval periods.

A keen historian, Mr Grey explained that in 941AD, Edmund, son of Edward the Elder, gave the Abbey at Evesham to a pair of Viking raiders named Athelm and Ulric, who drove away the monks and tenants and occupied the site.

However, the pair were later driven away themselves in 960AD when Evesham became a Benedictine foundation.

“So, there is every chance my battle axe was a monk slayer, which kind of blows my mind really,” said Mr Grey.

Mr Grey also runs a YouTube channel, Anglo Celtic Metal Detecting, with nearly 5,000 subscribers.

His latest video shows the moment he made the discovery and he has urged landowners to allow him, and other detectorists, to search their land.

He said: “I’ve made many good friends with farmers and landowners and love saving history, especially local Worcestershire history.

“People watch (my YouTube videos) from all over the world and it opens many doors for me across the country and in the trade.”

The axe has now been officially recorded and further details of the discovery can be found here.