Rare medieval seal discovered in UK is inscribed with 'Richard's secret' and bears a Roman-period gemstone

A medieval seal with a blood-red gemstone that was discovered in the U.K. is hiding an ancient secret, researchers have found.

A metal detectorist discovered the medieval seal in Gosfield, in the eastern county of Essex, in the fall of 2024. But a recent analysis of the seal by experts with the U.K.'s Portable Antiquities Scheme has revealed that the 800-year-old object prominently featured a 2,000-year-old Roman gemstone at its center.

"It's not common to have an object composed from two different time periods," Lori Rogerson, the finds liaison officer for Essex, told the BBC. "I thought it was a really special find."

The silver seal is just 1 inch (27.5 millimeters) long, and the entire keepsake weighs 0.23 ounces (6.44 grams), according to the entry for the artifact in the Portable Antiquities Scheme database. A loop attached to one end of the oval seal suggests it was suspended, perhaps on a necklace, rather than being a signet ring.

Around the bezel, there's a mirror-image inscription that reads "SECRETUM.RICARDI," meaning "Richard's secret" or the "secret [seal] of Richard," along with a cross pattée, a plus-shaped Christian symbol commonly used in medieval times by the Knights Templar.

The center of the Gosfield seal features a piece of carnelian, a brownish-red semiprecious stone, engraved with the image of a two-horse chariot. A charioteer stands on the back of the cart, holding the reins and a whip, suggesting he is competing in an ancient circus race. The carved gemstone dates to the late first century B.C. or early first century A.D., making it at least 1,200 years older than the metal seal matrix.

The mirror-image engraving and intaglio chariot design would appear the right way when Richard pressed it into wax as his seal.

Rogerson said Richard might have specifically chosen the Roman gemstone to show his knowledge of the classical world and his ability to procure something from a faraway place and time.

"It definitely would have been an indicator of the owner's social status," Rogerson told the BBC, "and indicated they were quite important — or saw themselves as quite important."

The Gosfield seal has been submitted for consideration as treasure under the U.K.'s Treasure Act of 1996, since it is made of silver and more than 300 years old. The Braintree Museum in Essex hopes to acquire the object following a treasure inquest.

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