'Very strange' sword discovered by St Annes detectorist on Blackpool beach

Detectorist Nigel Virgin, 74, of Tudor Road, was out on the sands between South and Central Pier two weeks ago when he picked up a signal for what turned out to be a large, rusty metal sword.

He said: “The storms have caused some deep dips in the sand, and I got a signal for what turned out to be a 1923 sixpence.

“I always check the hole afterwards and there was another signal. When I dug, I saw there was a part of the wooden handle poking out.

“I would say it’s at least 100-years-old, because it’s all barnacles and the blade is completely blunt. I can only think it must have come off a wreck.”

Nigel, a retired hotelier, first took up metal detecting in the early 1970s, and has in the past dug up treasures dating back to the bronze age - but this is the first time his adventures have unearthed a sword.

He said: “It will me a good 20 minutes to dig out. It’s very strange.

“It’s made of metal with a wooden handle. I think there was something else on there, because you can see there’s a gap where something else was once attached to it, but it’s gone.

“It needs an expert to have a look.

“It could be something off the pantomime on the pier for all I know, but I wouldn’t have thought so because it’s just too dangerous. You wouldn’t want to get hit on the head with this thing.

“I’ve found some funny things on the beach, but nothing like this. I belong to a metal detecting group and we’ve had some very nice finds lately because of the storms. There may be more out there still.”