Removal men find haul of gold in Conwy collector's oven

Removal men clearing the house of a former teacher and real life "Mr Chips" found a haul of gold ingots and sovereigns stored in his oven.

Dr Arthur Stamp, who died last year, spent his life collecting historical objects which fetched more than £20,000 when they were auctioned in Colwyn Bay, Conwy, last month.


Removal men then found a second haul of items when they opened Dr Stamp's oven.

The ingots, sovereigns and other items sold in the latest auction for £3,700.

Dr Stamp was described as a "Mr Chips" by a friend, in a reference to the teacher character in the film Goodbye Mr Chips.

The former history teacher from Penrhyn Bay died aged 88 in 2009 and left everything to charity.

Auctioneers were instructed to sell his house's contents, which included fossils, Neolithic and Bronze Age arrow heads and tools, arms and armour and medieval manuscripts.

The bomb squad were called after a World War II bomb, grenade and a German gas canister were also found hidden in a drawer.

That sale fetched more than £20,000 at auctioneers Rogers Jones in Colwyn Bay.

 

However, when his house was put on the market, removal men found a further stash of gold ingots, sovereigns and other items.

 

Auctioneer Ben Rogers Jones said: "Thank goodness the removal men opened the oven. It would have been quite a bonus for the new owners of the house.

"It was a cache of coins and tokens going back to the 17th Century.

"Back then people often got paid in tokens rather than money."

Items recovered from behind Dr Stamp's wardrobe include World War II propaganda leaflets.
 
There was also a letter written in 1830 by the Duke of Wellington.

Mr Rogers Jones described Dr Stamp as a "heck of a guy".

He added: "If you did history at school, he was the perfect teacher."

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-north-west-wales-11619770