Lost Treasure

“Land, ho, Captain!” Captain Redbeard looked out over the ship’s bow. A small island could be seen over the horizon. He looked down at the faded and wrinkled map in his hands. If the map was right, then he and his crew were just hours away from acquiring a treasure beyond their wildest dreams.

“Stay on course!” the captain called out. Every member of the crew was alert and eager to reach the destination. When there was treasure at stake, pirates paid attention. Of course, if the map was wrong, Redbeard knew he’d have an unhappy crew on his hands.

They sailed across the sparkling blue water until they were a few hundred yards away from shore. According to the map, the treasure was hidden in a cave on the island’s east coast. Redbeard barked out directions. “Steer her starboard, lads! We’ll anchor outside the inlet and lower the boats!”

The pirates sprang into action. They sailed around the coast of the island. Redbeard saw an inlet cove tucked inside the island’s shore, just as the map showed. They anchored the boat and lowered three rowboats. Captain Redbeard climbed into the first one, along with three other pirates. The pirates rowed the boat, leading the way into the inlet. The water narrowed and led into a cave carved inside the island’s rocky shore.

“The treasure awaits us! It will be a fine sight to see!” Redbeard said. The cave was cold and dark. A few feet away Redbeard could make out something glittering on a rocky shelf—the treasure! “Let’s grab it, lads!” he cried.

Then the water around them began to churn. A giant octopus rose up in front of them, thrashing its tentacles. The boat nearly tipped over. Redbeard quickly tried to think of a plan. The map hadn’t said anything about a giant octopus!

The Treasure Hunt

Jordan loves to use clues to solve riddles. That’s why she loves treasure hunts. She always dreams about being a pirate who is searching for a big treasure chest. She climbs trees and digs holes in her backyard, pretending that she is on a treasure hunt.

Jordan’s birthday is soon. Her friends Cameron and Annie decide to create a treasure hunt as her birthday present. They ask their parents what they can do.

“Well, first, you would need to make a map!” says Cameron’s mom.

“How do we do that?” Cameron asks.

His mom pulls out a piece of paper and several crayons. “First, you need to draw the place where you will hide the treasure,” she says. “How about you draw our backyard?”

Cameron pulls out a black crayon and starts to draw. He marks the spot where the porch is, and he draws a black circle to show where his trampoline sits. His mom pulls out a green crayon and draws the big trees that surround their backyard. “See? There are plenty of places to hide a treasure,” she tells him.

The next day, Cameron shows Annie the map. She thinks that it looks just like his backyard. “It’s perfect!” she says, excited.

“Now, we just need to mark the places where we will hide the clues and then the treasure,” Cameron says, looking around his backyard.

Annie walks over to the trampoline. She gets down on her hands and knees and finds a big rock. “We can hide a clue under here!” she shouts to Cameron.

Cameron nods his head in agreement. He points to the porch and then to a big tree near the trampoline. “We can also put clues near those spots!” he says.

His mom comes outside and sees them planning the treasure hunt. “Don’t forget to draw the bird fountain on the map,” she says. “You can draw the fountain with a blue crayon so that Jordan will know that it’s filled with water.”

Cameron and Annie run to get the map. “We can also add the rock by the trampoline so that Jordan can find the clue,” Annie says.

“And we should draw the tree by the porch!” Cameron adds.

They put more on the map, and when they finish, their drawing includes everything in Cameron’s backyard. They map all the shapes and kinds of land and water in the area.

After they hide all the clues (ten in total), Cameron and Annie think about the treasure. “It should be a chest full of candy!” Annie says.

“That’s cool! But we could also fill a chest with pirate stuff like a compass and a pirate hat, and even a message in a bottle!” says Cameron.

They finally decide to do both. Their parents help them find a small chest, and they fill it with pirate things and candy. They dig a hole near a tree and bury the chest.

The next day, Jordan comes to Cameron’s house for her birthday. Many of their friends come as well. After they cut the cake, Cameron and Annie tell Jordan that they have a surprise for her. They give her the first clue.

“This is so exciting! Thank you so much, guys!” Jordan exclaims. She sets out to find her treasure, with the map in hand.

Gold Rush

A man in England digs up buried treasure worth millions.

Terry Herbert is one lucky guy. He recently struck it rich! He discovered a huge hoard of buried treasure. A hoard is a hidden collection of something valuable.

Herbert uncovered loads of gold and silver artifacts—about 1,350 items in all. An artifact is an old, human-made object. He found the treasure on a farm in England. That is a country in the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom is in Europe. Experts say the hoard could be worth millions of dollars.

Herbert discovered the treasure using a metal detector. That is a handheld piece of equipment. It beeps when it is waved near metal. After finding the hoard, Herbert says, “I was going to bed, and in my sleep I was seeing gold.”

Some of those flashy finds include gold plates and weapon parts covered in jewels. Experts say the treasure most likely belonged to the Anglo-Saxons. That is a group of people who ruled what is now England. They ruled more than a thousand years ago. The Anglo-Saxons originally came from what are now Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands. Those are countries in Europe.

Researchers are working to finish what Herbert started. They are searching the farm where the hoard was found. They want to make sure all the treasure has been collected. Then they will place the items in a museum.

Experts such as Kevin Leahy are most excited about some of the more unusual items in the hoard. “The things that we can’t identify are the ones that are going to teach us something new,” he says.

Jackpot!

The Anglo-Saxons’ gold may be old, but it could be worth millions. Check out some of the finds Terry Herbert’s treasure hunt turned up.

Helmet Piece This helmet part covered the wearer’s cheek. Anglo-Saxon helmets had several pieces that soldiers could close to protect their faces.

Sword Hilt This jewel-covered gold treasure may look like a bracelet. It is actually the hilt, or handle, of a sword. Many Anglo-Saxon weapons had hilts.

Gold Horse Several objects that look like horses were uncovered. They might have been used to decorate other items.