An "unusual" hoard of 44 Norfolk wolf coins produced in the latter stages of the 1st Century and found in south Norfolk have been declared treasure.

The Iron Age coins, about the size of a thick modern penny, were minted by the Iceni tribe whose territories covered much of East Anglia.

Museum finds officer Adrian Marsden said the coins probably belonged to "a member of tribal hierarchy".

The Norwich Castle Museum hopes to acquire them for its collection.

"This number of coins is unusual," Mr Marsden said. "We did have a hoard of 82 from north-west Norfolk in the 1980s but 44 is certainly sizeable and more may turn up.

"Although these aren't the bright yellow gold of earlier Norfolk wolf staters (coins) they would have represented a fair amount of wealth... the person who buried these would have been someone of account.

"These coins get debased over time, so you get bright yellow buttery gold ones, then years later ones that are more coppery with a bit of silver," he added.

The Norfolk wolf coins were among a number of treasure items found by metal-detecting enthusiasts, featured at the Norfolk Coroner's Court.

To read the complete article, see:Norfolk wolf coins unearthed in treasure find(www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-norfolk-26947305)