Image copyright
Mike Smith
A metal detectorist has found what is thought to be the first Celtic chariot burial to be uncovered in Wales.
The burial ritual was reserved for high-ranking chiefs who would be interred complete with their chariot, horses, tack and even weapons.
Mike Smith believes his find may point to a huge undiscovered Iron Age settlement nearby.
The location in south Pembrokeshire is being kept secret ahead of a major dig.
His first find in February came purely by chance as his favourite hunting ground was waterlogged, forcing him to switch to another field where he had not had much luck before.
But this time he found what he first thought to be a medieval broach.
He emailed a picture to an expert contact who said it was part of a Celtic horse harness and dating from around 600 BC.
Mr Smith, from Milford Haven, went straight back the following day.
He dug down to find more pieces, their red enamelling still vivid, and realised what the collection might mean.
"I knew the importance of them straight away," said Mr Smith who has been prospecting for around 30 years.
"It was just instinct. I'd read all about chariot burials and just wished it could have been me, so finding this has been a privilege."
But he had to convince the experts. One of the first he spoke to told him: "No, you're wrong. One's never been found in this part of the country."
But by June, initial excavations and surveys were underway by Dyfed Archaeological Trust and National Museum Wales.
Ground penetrating radar showed a pattern of buried ditches and walls, suggesting a large previously unknown Celtic settlement, possibly bigger that Castell Henllys near Crymych.
Then a trial excavation revealed the tops of a pair of chariot wheels.
"Often the wheels were laid flat," said Mr Smith. "But this one appeared to have been buried intact. It could have had the chieftain or queen sitting in it.
"There would have been a mound over it but that has gone."
He believes past ploughing might have brought the finds closer to the surface.
The site has now been recovered and scheduled to give it legal protection, with a full excavation planned for next year.
But what is still exciting Mr Smith is a three-metre metal anomaly shown up by the scans and actually underneath the chariot.
"It could be weapons. Or it could be treasure."