0:00:17 > 0:00:19Once they were hidden in the dark.
0:00:20 > 0:00:22Now, they sparkle in the light.
0:00:24 > 0:00:28But 100 years since they were unearthed from a London cellar,
0:00:28 > 0:00:30the jewels of the Cheapside Hoard
0:00:30 > 0:00:33remain as marvellous and mysterious as ever.
0:00:38 > 0:00:39Now for the first time,
0:00:39 > 0:00:42this breathtaking treasure from the time of Shakespeare
0:00:42 > 0:00:45is being brought together for exhibition
0:00:45 > 0:00:46at the Museum of London.
0:00:52 > 0:00:53I'm Shaun Leane.
0:00:53 > 0:00:56As a goldsmith and jewellery designer,
0:00:56 > 0:01:00I've created avant-garde pieces for musicians like Bjork
0:01:00 > 0:01:03and fashion designers like Alexander McQueen.
0:01:03 > 0:01:07I'm fascinated by how traditional craft skills can be applied
0:01:07 > 0:01:10to sophisticated modern jewellery.
0:01:10 > 0:01:13But I'm also intrigued by the deeper meaning of jewels -
0:01:13 > 0:01:15how beneath the surface glitter,
0:01:15 > 0:01:18there's the stamp of something much more personal.
0:01:20 > 0:01:23That's why I've become so bewitched by the Cheapside Hoard.
0:01:24 > 0:01:29These beautifully made pieces might be three-and-a-half centuries old,
0:01:29 > 0:01:32but they're full of amazing stories -
0:01:32 > 0:01:35stories about the people who wore them
0:01:35 > 0:01:37and the people who made them.
0:01:37 > 0:01:39The workmanship that went into that...
0:01:39 > 0:01:43The detail - I don't think I've ever seen a chain so beautiful,
0:01:43 > 0:01:45to be honest.
0:01:45 > 0:01:47There's so much about the Cheapside Hoard
0:01:47 > 0:01:49that I want to discover.
0:01:49 > 0:01:51Who did the collection belong to?
0:01:51 > 0:01:53Why was it buried?
0:01:53 > 0:01:55And why was it forgotten?
0:01:55 > 0:01:58Do you think that one of these soldiers
0:01:58 > 0:02:00could have been responsible for burying the Hoard?
0:02:00 > 0:02:01It's quite possible.
0:02:01 > 0:02:05I've been given behind-the-scenes access to the exhibition
0:02:05 > 0:02:08and allowed the once-in-a-lifetime chance
0:02:08 > 0:02:11to handle some of these spellbinding jewels.
0:02:11 > 0:02:13I'm dying to have a look at this.
0:02:13 > 0:02:17- It's just a tour de force, really. - Unbelievable.
0:02:17 > 0:02:20It's an experience that's revealed a world even more exciting -
0:02:20 > 0:02:25and sometimes darker - than I could ever have imagined.
0:02:25 > 0:02:29This is a tale of fire and forgery, intrigue and murder.
0:02:29 > 0:02:33But it's also a story of deep devotion, astonishing skill
0:02:33 > 0:02:35and breathtaking beauty.
0:02:47 > 0:02:51Cheapside - right at the heart of the City of London
0:02:51 > 0:02:54and a place where old and new collide.
0:03:02 > 0:03:05They've been demolishing and rebuilding here for centuries -
0:03:05 > 0:03:08and it's thrown up some unexpected treasures.
0:03:10 > 0:03:12In 1912, a gang of workmen
0:03:12 > 0:03:17were demolishing an old building which stood on 30-32 Cheapside -
0:03:17 > 0:03:20somewhere here, above my head.
0:03:20 > 0:03:22They dug down as far as the cellars
0:03:22 > 0:03:25when one of them struck his pickaxe into the floor.
0:03:25 > 0:03:26When he levered it back,
0:03:26 > 0:03:29he noticed something glittering amongst the earth -
0:03:29 > 0:03:31something that looked like gold.
0:03:31 > 0:03:33Something that looked like jewels.
0:03:35 > 0:03:37The Cheapside Hoard contains everything
0:03:37 > 0:03:40from enamelled necklaces to rock crystal tankards,
0:03:40 > 0:03:44from crucifixes to cameos.
0:03:44 > 0:03:46Most of the nearly 500 pieces
0:03:46 > 0:03:49seem to date to the early 17th century,
0:03:49 > 0:03:52but the collection covers a bewildering range
0:03:52 > 0:03:54of styles and periods.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02This is just such an extraordinary gem, really,
0:04:02 > 0:04:05and it just shows us, I think you can see here,
0:04:05 > 0:04:08the head of a woman in profile.
0:04:08 > 0:04:11It's an Egyptian agate
0:04:11 > 0:04:14and it was cut in the second or third century BC.
0:04:14 > 0:04:17That's unbelievable - it's so precise, isn't it?
0:04:17 > 0:04:18The detail...
0:04:18 > 0:04:19If you look really closely,
0:04:19 > 0:04:21you can even see the feather outlines
0:04:21 > 0:04:23on the headdress.
0:04:23 > 0:04:27That might be a clue to the identity of this lady.
0:04:27 > 0:04:28Who do you think this may be?
0:04:28 > 0:04:33There are two possibilities - either it's Berenice II
0:04:33 > 0:04:35or, much more likely, Cleopatra.
0:04:35 > 0:04:36Oh, really?
0:04:36 > 0:04:39It's been in circulation for the best part of...what,
0:04:39 > 0:04:41nearly 2,000 years, perhaps,
0:04:41 > 0:04:44before it ended up underneath a cellar floor.
0:04:44 > 0:04:47I mean, I think this is what's so fascinating about the Hoard.
0:04:47 > 0:04:50You've got both ends of the spectrum -
0:04:50 > 0:04:53this really old, beautiful piece,
0:04:53 > 0:04:56then you have the emerald watch fob, which is...
0:04:58 > 0:04:59It's almost a modern piece.
0:04:59 > 0:05:02You really look at that stone and think,
0:05:02 > 0:05:05the facets are so clean, so linear...
0:05:05 > 0:05:09- It's just a tour de force, really. - Unbelievable.
0:05:09 > 0:05:12That's a pretty big...pretty big emerald.
0:05:12 > 0:05:13It's whopping!
0:05:13 > 0:05:15How my mind works, as a jeweller,
0:05:15 > 0:05:17is what kind of size rough do you need
0:05:17 > 0:05:20to cut all those facets and get this shape?
0:05:20 > 0:05:25I'm estimating you would need about 150 carats of rough to cut this.
0:05:25 > 0:05:30I suppose the burning question is who would this have belonged to?
0:05:30 > 0:05:31I just wish we knew.
0:05:31 > 0:05:35It has to have belonged to somebody with incredible wealth.
0:05:35 > 0:05:37- Royal?- It's entirely possible.
0:05:42 > 0:05:45Maybe one of the most amazing things about the priceless jewels
0:05:45 > 0:05:47in the Cheapside Hoard
0:05:47 > 0:05:49isn't that they were discovered,
0:05:49 > 0:05:52but that they didn't just disappear again.
0:05:53 > 0:05:56The fact that the Cheapside Hoard was saved intact
0:05:56 > 0:05:58is really down to one man -
0:05:58 > 0:06:01the unforgettably named "Stoney Jack" Lawrence.
0:06:02 > 0:06:06George "Stoney Jack" Lawrence was a pawnbroker,
0:06:06 > 0:06:07but a pawnbroker with a difference.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10He combined his hard-nosed business interests
0:06:10 > 0:06:14with a passion for saving London's archaeological past.
0:06:14 > 0:06:16Stoney Jack was well-known amongst the navvies
0:06:16 > 0:06:20working on London's building sites for offering top prices
0:06:20 > 0:06:23for any unusual items that they happened to dig up.
0:06:27 > 0:06:30The workmen who stumbled across the Cheapside Hoard
0:06:30 > 0:06:33were soon knocking at Stoney Jack's door.
0:06:35 > 0:06:37Within a few weeks,
0:06:37 > 0:06:40he had paid out for hundreds of astonishing pieces
0:06:40 > 0:06:43which he in turn sold on to the new Museum of London.
0:06:47 > 0:06:51Over a century on from Stoney Jack's remarkable rescue job,
0:06:51 > 0:06:54painstaking work on the Cheapside Hoard continues.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58So, Catherine, what are the pieces you're working on now?
0:06:58 > 0:07:00Well, these are some of the chains from the Hoard,
0:07:00 > 0:07:02and what I'm doing at the moment
0:07:02 > 0:07:04is actually preparing them for mounting.
0:07:04 > 0:07:06We face quite a challenge in how to display them
0:07:06 > 0:07:09because of the incredibly fragile enamel.
0:07:09 > 0:07:10So what we've been doing
0:07:10 > 0:07:13is stitching them to these brass wires,
0:07:13 > 0:07:16which have been coated in a protective plastic coating,
0:07:16 > 0:07:19so that then, they can be hung up in the case.
0:07:19 > 0:07:21We quite like this idea of stitching,
0:07:21 > 0:07:24because I think that's something that would've been done originally.
0:07:24 > 0:07:26It's how they originally were worn, weren't they?
0:07:26 > 0:07:29I've studied portraits, and it was beautiful,
0:07:29 > 0:07:31they way that they draped these chains -
0:07:31 > 0:07:33they would be sewn to the shoulders and draped along the dress,
0:07:33 > 0:07:36and actually hanging down the arms as well.
0:07:36 > 0:07:38I've seen them actually have the chains,
0:07:38 > 0:07:41the enamel chains, hanging down their dress
0:07:41 > 0:07:43with a fob watch on the end, as well,
0:07:43 > 0:07:45so they would have chipped very quickly.
0:07:45 > 0:07:48You do wonder how long they would have survived, actually,
0:07:48 > 0:07:49if they hadn't been buried.
0:07:49 > 0:07:52Because, you know, the enamel's so fragile on there -
0:07:52 > 0:07:54I'm sure eventually people would have just thrown them away
0:07:54 > 0:07:56because the enamel would've started coming away,
0:07:56 > 0:07:58and you'd re-use the diamonds.
0:08:01 > 0:08:04The fragile jewels contained in the Cheapside Hoard
0:08:04 > 0:08:08might have survived intact for three-and-a-half centuries,
0:08:08 > 0:08:09but Cheapside itself has not.
0:08:12 > 0:08:14Like many parts of London,
0:08:14 > 0:08:17this place has changed almost out of all recognition.
0:08:22 > 0:08:23In the 17th century,
0:08:23 > 0:08:26this was the city's major thoroughfare,
0:08:26 > 0:08:28and the glittering heart of the jewellery trade.
0:08:30 > 0:08:33There are still jewellery shops here today,
0:08:33 > 0:08:36but to get a real sense of Cheapside's golden age,
0:08:36 > 0:08:39you have to turn up one of its side streets.
0:08:41 > 0:08:43This is Goldsmiths' Hall -
0:08:43 > 0:08:45the headquarters of the powerful guild
0:08:45 > 0:08:47who once owned and oversaw
0:08:47 > 0:08:49many of the jewellers' premises in London.
0:08:52 > 0:08:54- Hi, Shaun.- Very nice to meet you.
0:08:54 > 0:08:56I'm meeting up with David Beasley,
0:08:56 > 0:08:58the Company of Goldsmiths' librarian,
0:08:58 > 0:09:01to try and get a picture of what Cheapside was like
0:09:01 > 0:09:02at the time of the Hoard.
0:09:02 > 0:09:06This is part of the estate plans done in the late 17th century,
0:09:06 > 0:09:09and it shows Cheapside and the property owned by the company.
0:09:09 > 0:09:12And this is the area which was commonly known as Goldsmiths' Row,
0:09:12 > 0:09:16a prominent shopping area for goldsmiths and silversmiths.
0:09:16 > 0:09:19So it was the jewellery quarter of London at the time?
0:09:19 > 0:09:21Very much so, yes.
0:09:21 > 0:09:25So, looking at these shop fronts, they're pretty small.
0:09:25 > 0:09:28- Yes, I think they were.- How big do you think they'd have been?
0:09:28 > 0:09:31I think maybe five to ten feet,
0:09:31 > 0:09:33maybe 15 feet in width, as it were.
0:09:33 > 0:09:38- Much smaller than they would be today.- So here we have 30-32,
0:09:38 > 0:09:41which is the building where the Hoard was buried.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44Do we have any idea who occupied that building at that time?
0:09:44 > 0:09:50We have some idea. We have a rent book here from 1610, and this
0:09:50 > 0:09:54details some of the ownership and leases which people had.
0:09:54 > 0:09:59And if we look in this section here we know that Alexander Prescott
0:09:59 > 0:10:03had a tenement, which we think is in the area of 30-32,
0:10:03 > 0:10:08and we know that Mary Wakefield took on a lease of this in 1632.
0:10:08 > 0:10:13So...could Mary Wakefield have been the person who buried the Hoard?
0:10:13 > 0:10:14It's possible,
0:10:14 > 0:10:17but one of the problems is there was a lot of subletting,
0:10:17 > 0:10:21so the person who owned the lease was not necessarily
0:10:21 > 0:10:25the person in occupation of the shop or a particular part of the property.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33We'll probably never be able to put a name to the person who hid
0:10:33 > 0:10:35the Cheapside Hoard.
0:10:35 > 0:10:37But because it was buried under Goldsmiths' Row,
0:10:37 > 0:10:40we can be fairly sure that it belonged to a working jeweller.
0:10:42 > 0:10:45It's likely that this fabulous collection was a
0:10:45 > 0:10:47goldsmith's stock in trade -
0:10:47 > 0:10:50with pieces for sale, repair and recycling.
0:10:51 > 0:10:54And there's another aspect of the Hoard that we can guess at...
0:10:59 > 0:11:03..what the place where the jewels were produced in looked like.
0:11:07 > 0:11:08So welcome to our workshop.
0:11:10 > 0:11:14These are my craftsmen - Olly, Pedro and Duncan.
0:11:14 > 0:11:17Now, if a craftsman from the period of the Cheapside Hoard was to
0:11:17 > 0:11:20walk in here today, he would see
0:11:20 > 0:11:24a lot of similarities to the workshop he would have practised in.
0:11:24 > 0:11:28Not much has changed, we use the same skins underneath the benches
0:11:28 > 0:11:33to catch the gold lemel - which is the gold dust - which is recycled.
0:11:33 > 0:11:37And we use the same kind of pliers, little drills, the files
0:11:37 > 0:11:40and even the tools that we use to form and forge pieces
0:11:40 > 0:11:44are very similar to what they would have used in those days.
0:11:48 > 0:11:51Duncan's making a bespoke messenger pendant.
0:11:51 > 0:11:54We were commissioned by one of my clients who wanted me
0:11:54 > 0:11:58to create something really beautiful and sentimental for their loved one.
0:11:59 > 0:12:02I think there are some similarities between this piece we're
0:12:02 > 0:12:05creating and some of the pieces in the Cheapside Hoard.
0:12:05 > 0:12:08We've taken a very similar silhouette from the aglets
0:12:08 > 0:12:10they used to wear on their clothing.
0:12:10 > 0:12:13They used these aglets to fasten with ribbons
0:12:13 > 0:12:16and fabric the big puffy arms they used to wear.
0:12:16 > 0:12:18We liked that silhouette, so we thought
0:12:18 > 0:12:22we would use the same shape and form to create this pendant.
0:12:24 > 0:12:29It's made from 18-carat white gold, set with savarite diamonds,
0:12:29 > 0:12:32then a secret lover's message would be sealed into the piece.
0:12:34 > 0:12:37I think one of the beautiful things about the Cheapside Hoard
0:12:37 > 0:12:39was you could see a real evolution of sentiment,
0:12:39 > 0:12:43and we're still following it through today in pieces that we're making.
0:12:50 > 0:12:53Over the centuries London's jewellery trade migrated westward
0:12:53 > 0:12:59from Cheapside, eventually settling in the area around Hatton Garden.
0:12:59 > 0:13:01This is where I did my apprenticeship
0:13:01 > 0:13:03and where I'm still based.
0:13:03 > 0:13:08Hatton Garden is home to craftsmen and traders from all over the world.
0:13:08 > 0:13:11It was a similar picture three-and-a-half centuries ago.
0:13:13 > 0:13:16At the time of the Cheapside Hoard London's jewellery trade was
0:13:16 > 0:13:19dominated by emigre families - French Huguenots,
0:13:19 > 0:13:23craftsmen from the Low Countries, goldsmiths from Germany.
0:13:23 > 0:13:27This was an international business in an international city.
0:13:29 > 0:13:31And it wasn't just the people involved in the jewel trade
0:13:31 > 0:13:35who came from overseas - it was the jewels themselves.
0:13:36 > 0:13:39In the Cheapside Hoard there are gemstones from
0:13:39 > 0:13:41many parts of the world.
0:13:41 > 0:13:46Lapis lazuli from Afghanistan, turquoise from Persia,
0:13:46 > 0:13:48pearls from Bahrain.
0:13:48 > 0:13:53And here, in this really beautiful jewel in the form of a salamander...
0:13:53 > 0:13:56- He's a cute little thing, isn't he? - ..are emeralds from Colombia.
0:13:57 > 0:14:00- And you might make out in the tail... - Yeah, I can see the small rose cuts.
0:14:00 > 0:14:04- ..little, tiny diamonds.- And where do you think they were from?
0:14:04 > 0:14:07Well, I think the diamonds came from Burma or India,
0:14:07 > 0:14:11so, in this one jewel, you have the bringing together of the old
0:14:11 > 0:14:14and new world, and London at the crossroads
0:14:14 > 0:14:18of this international, very sophisticated trade.
0:14:18 > 0:14:20He's almost staring at you, isn't he?
0:14:20 > 0:14:22And I notice he's got a little tongue in there.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25You can just make out on the white enamel
0:14:25 > 0:14:28tiny little black dots to indicate teeth.
0:14:28 > 0:14:32And, on the underside, little flecks to indicate scaling.
0:14:32 > 0:14:34When I was an apprentice, I was always taught
0:14:34 > 0:14:37a piece of jewellery should look just as fine and beautiful
0:14:37 > 0:14:39from the back as it should the front.
0:14:39 > 0:14:41And what a perfect example.
0:14:41 > 0:14:43So you mention, in the Hoard,
0:14:43 > 0:14:47there are many different stones from all over the world.
0:14:47 > 0:14:50My question is - how those stones all got here,
0:14:50 > 0:14:53and was it quite a risky business?
0:14:53 > 0:14:54It certainly was.
0:14:54 > 0:14:58There's one document which refers to a jeweller - a Dutchman -
0:14:58 > 0:15:04who'd spent about 30 years abroad gathering up gemstones and jewels.
0:15:04 > 0:15:06That collection must have been outstanding.
0:15:06 > 0:15:10Certainly from the accounts of the time, the crew of the ship were
0:15:10 > 0:15:15just amazed by what they saw, one of them described his cabin
0:15:15 > 0:15:18as almost afire with jewels shining.
0:15:18 > 0:15:23- Then, on the voyage back, it seems he was poisoned.- Oh, my goodness.
0:15:23 > 0:15:28And his body was tossed overboard, and, once the ship arrived
0:15:28 > 0:15:32off the English coast, the ship's carpenter jumped ship with the booty.
0:15:32 > 0:15:34And headed up to the capital.
0:15:34 > 0:15:39He then tried to sell this material on the London market.
0:15:39 > 0:15:41Could some of these stones have ended up in the Hoard?
0:15:41 > 0:15:45There were many hundreds of thousands of them and it's entirely possible.
0:15:45 > 0:15:47Yeah, it is, isn't it?
0:15:58 > 0:16:00'Londoners' love of dressing up and adornment
0:16:00 > 0:16:02'fuelled the international jewel trade.
0:16:05 > 0:16:08'For the growing merchant class, wearing expensive jewellery
0:16:08 > 0:16:11'was a way of signalling their new-found status and confidence.'
0:16:19 > 0:16:22This is Margaret Cotton, the wife of a wealthy merchant.
0:16:22 > 0:16:25You can see here she's wearing a ring on her little finger,
0:16:25 > 0:16:27just as we would do today.
0:16:27 > 0:16:31But up here you can see she's also had one sowed into her ruff.
0:16:31 > 0:16:34Rings and other jewels were also attached to girdles and cuffs -
0:16:34 > 0:16:37basically anywhere you could show off your wealth.
0:16:39 > 0:16:41Whether nouveau-riche or royalty,
0:16:41 > 0:16:44high society in the early 17th century
0:16:44 > 0:16:45was all about display.
0:16:47 > 0:16:49Wealthy women piled their hair high
0:16:49 > 0:16:52with eye-catching clasps and droplets.
0:16:54 > 0:16:57Fashionable men wore jewels sewn into their caps and cloaks.
0:16:59 > 0:17:03Even as fashions became simpler and more restrained,
0:17:03 > 0:17:07ordinary items like buttons could be still encrusted with gemstones.
0:17:09 > 0:17:12With such a demand for jewels and such large profits to be made,
0:17:12 > 0:17:14it maybe wasn't surprising
0:17:14 > 0:17:17that some traders were prepared to cut corners.
0:17:19 > 0:17:24So, Hazel, what do we have here? Two very different-looking objects.
0:17:24 > 0:17:28And intriguing objects too.
0:17:28 > 0:17:33Let's just start with this one, two fabulous sapphires
0:17:33 > 0:17:37and a very valuable gemstone, all from Sri Lanka.
0:17:37 > 0:17:38Beautiful piece.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41The spinel has been drilled from both ends.
0:17:41 > 0:17:46The cutter's made a bit of an error, he's started drilling
0:17:46 > 0:17:48and gone completely off-line.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50Rather like a zig-zaggy caterpillar all the way through.
0:17:50 > 0:17:52I bet he was quite angry with himself,
0:17:52 > 0:17:55but you only get one go, I suppose.
0:17:55 > 0:17:56He must have been very annoyed.
0:17:56 > 0:18:00Particularly because the material was so valuable.
0:18:00 > 0:18:06So, there was a real market for counterfeits, and this is one.
0:18:06 > 0:18:12Now it may not look it now, because the colour has faded,
0:18:12 > 0:18:17but, when this was first made, it was probably akin in colour to that.
0:18:17 > 0:18:19I was wondering what the subject was.
0:18:19 > 0:18:23So, what this was meant to look like was the rough spinel,
0:18:23 > 0:18:25and therefore very, very valuable stone.
0:18:25 > 0:18:28A man called Thomas Sympson, a jeweller in Cheapside,
0:18:28 > 0:18:32had a business or sideline in counterfeiting spinels.
0:18:32 > 0:18:37And what I think he probably did was rock crystal was heated,
0:18:37 > 0:18:39to a kind of red hot,
0:18:39 > 0:18:43and then dropped into a bucket or container
0:18:43 > 0:18:46of cold dye-impregnated water,
0:18:46 > 0:18:52and that quench crackling, as it's known, induced thermal shock,
0:18:52 > 0:18:56opening up the fissures in the stone, and then the dye could filtrate in.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59Did he make a lot of money out of this counterfeit business?
0:18:59 > 0:19:03These were being sold at £7,000 or £8,000 apiece.
0:19:03 > 0:19:07Oh, my goodness. That's a lot of money in those days.
0:19:07 > 0:19:11- A huge amount of money.- Gosh! What a rogue.- Yes, absolutely.
0:19:11 > 0:19:12What a rogue.
0:19:17 > 0:19:19'Policing the jewellery trade
0:19:19 > 0:19:21'was one of the main jobs of the company of goldsmiths.
0:19:24 > 0:19:27'In the courtroom at their headquarters near Cheapside,
0:19:27 > 0:19:29'they could pass stiff sentences on jewellers
0:19:29 > 0:19:33'found guilty of having sold substandard or counterfeit goods.
0:19:35 > 0:19:40'Today, the goldsmiths company still has a major role in quality control.
0:19:40 > 0:19:45'In the back rooms of Goldsmiths' hall, gold and silver is tested
0:19:45 > 0:19:49'for purity, literally to check whether it comes up to scratch.
0:19:49 > 0:19:53'It's a process that hasn't changed since the 17th century.
0:19:55 > 0:19:58'Jewels also come to the office to be stamped with
0:19:58 > 0:20:00'the famous leopard head hallmark.
0:20:01 > 0:20:05'It's one of the oldest brand logos in the world, identifying
0:20:05 > 0:20:08'a jewel that's made in London, and giving its quality in carats
0:20:08 > 0:20:11'and its year of manufacture.'
0:20:11 > 0:20:14But, when it comes to the Cheapside Hoard, there's a problem.
0:20:14 > 0:20:16Although larger pieces of gold and silver
0:20:16 > 0:20:18were routinely hallmarked in the 17th century,
0:20:18 > 0:20:22none of the jewels from the Hoard were ever stamped, so when it comes
0:20:22 > 0:20:25to dating the Hoard, we have to rely on other clues.
0:20:26 > 0:20:28What we have here is a watch.
0:20:28 > 0:20:33It's a really sophisticated timepiece with calendar indications.
0:20:33 > 0:20:35The detail on it is beautiful.
0:20:35 > 0:20:39But also, thankfully, it bears the signature of the maker.
0:20:39 > 0:20:44The initial "G" and then "Ferlite" for Gaultier Ferlite.
0:20:44 > 0:20:48- Do we know this watchmaker? - Thankfully, yes.
0:20:48 > 0:20:52His father worked as the pastor of the Italian church in London,
0:20:52 > 0:20:56and then, after his death, his mother remarried,
0:20:56 > 0:20:58and the small family moved back to Geneva,
0:20:58 > 0:21:02and then Gaultier was apprentice clock/watchmaker, and by the
0:21:02 > 0:21:08turn of the century - 1590/1600 - was master of the company.
0:21:08 > 0:21:12- The watch probably dates to about 1610-1620.- Oh, really?
0:21:12 > 0:21:17But the really crucial bit of dating evidence for the Hoard is this
0:21:17 > 0:21:22tiny piece. So, from a quite large object, to something really small.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25So small that it's been completely overlooked.
0:21:25 > 0:21:28- This is a small carnelian seal, is it?- Exactly.
0:21:28 > 0:21:31And, even with the damage, you can just about work out
0:21:31 > 0:21:36that it's the heraldic badge of William Howard, Viscount Stafford.
0:21:36 > 0:21:39Now, Lord Stafford was created Viscount in 1640.
0:21:39 > 0:21:43So this little gem really is a very important part of the Hoard
0:21:43 > 0:21:44cos it gives us the date.
0:21:44 > 0:21:48The presence of this tiny little piece indicates that the Hoard
0:21:48 > 0:21:51has to have been buried after 1640.
0:21:54 > 0:21:59William Howard's triumph at becoming a viscount wasn't long lasting.
0:21:59 > 0:22:02This was the tense lead up to the English Civil War,
0:22:02 > 0:22:05and because the Howards had Catholic and Royalist sympathies,
0:22:05 > 0:22:07they left for the Continent.
0:22:10 > 0:22:15'In 1649, the same year as the king was executed,
0:22:15 > 0:22:18'Lord Howard's estate was seized by Parliament.
0:22:19 > 0:22:22'It's possible that the family jewels were sold off at this time,
0:22:22 > 0:22:25'finding their way into the Cheapside Hoard.
0:22:29 > 0:22:33'Could the Civil War help answer that other great mystery?
0:22:33 > 0:22:36'Why was the Hoard buried?
0:22:36 > 0:22:38'And why was it never retrieved?'
0:22:45 > 0:22:46David, do you think the Civil War
0:22:46 > 0:22:49had a big impact on the Cheapside jewellery trade?
0:22:49 > 0:22:51I think it definitely did. We don't have many references,
0:22:51 > 0:22:55but there is this entry in January, 1643, when the beadle
0:22:55 > 0:22:59who collects the subscription, if you like, from the company,
0:22:59 > 0:23:03who says he's been doing it for 18 years, and this last half year
0:23:03 > 0:23:05he's tried to collect money from people,
0:23:05 > 0:23:08but he says there's no-one to collect it from.
0:23:08 > 0:23:12He says, "Some have gone for soldiers and many shops shut up."
0:23:12 > 0:23:15So, do you think that one of these soldiers could've been
0:23:15 > 0:23:18responsible for burying the Hoard, and then unfortunately
0:23:18 > 0:23:21went off to war and got killed and never came back to reclaim it?
0:23:21 > 0:23:24It's quite possible and it seems to fit reasonably well with
0:23:24 > 0:23:28dating of the objects in the Hoard, so that is certainly one possibility.
0:23:28 > 0:23:31And do you think there could've been any other reasons
0:23:31 > 0:23:33why somebody would bury a hoard?
0:23:33 > 0:23:36There were, from time to time, bouts of plague,
0:23:36 > 0:23:41and that was of course another reason why things might have been buried.
0:23:41 > 0:23:44Fear of getting the plague, where people would perhaps
0:23:44 > 0:23:49bury their worldly goods and then take off out of the city.
0:23:49 > 0:23:51Why not just take your stock with you?
0:23:51 > 0:23:53I suppose there was the fear that you may not be sure
0:23:53 > 0:23:55where you're going to and for how long,
0:23:55 > 0:23:59and it might be safer to bury it in one fixed place, and then
0:23:59 > 0:24:03you could return when times were better and more certain, perhaps.
0:24:05 > 0:24:09'Civil war and plague might be reason why the Hoard was buried
0:24:09 > 0:24:13'and forgotten, but there is another intriguing possibility,
0:24:13 > 0:24:17'and it lies in that other great calamity of the 17th century.'
0:24:19 > 0:24:21The Great Fire of London.
0:24:23 > 0:24:27Cheapside was ground zero - pretty much the dead centre
0:24:27 > 0:24:30of the huge swathe of the city destroyed by the great fire.
0:24:31 > 0:24:36Id you'd been here on Wednesday, 5th September, 1666,
0:24:36 > 0:24:40you would've had to pick your way through a smouldering ruin
0:24:40 > 0:24:44of charred timbers and globs of melted glass and lead.
0:24:44 > 0:24:46Cheapside had been totally wiped out.
0:24:49 > 0:24:52'But below ground, it was a different story.
0:24:52 > 0:24:54'There were deep cellars down here
0:24:54 > 0:24:57'that survived the devastating fire storm.
0:24:57 > 0:24:59'When the Goldsmiths company
0:24:59 > 0:25:03'eventually rebuilt their property on 30-32 Cheapside,
0:25:03 > 0:25:07'they just used the old, undamaged vaults as foundations.
0:25:07 > 0:25:10'And it was in the pre-fire layout that the demolition gang
0:25:10 > 0:25:13'discovered the Hoard centuries later.
0:25:15 > 0:25:18'So, was the Hoard buried by someone fleeing the inferno?
0:25:18 > 0:25:23'Someone who, for whatever reason, wasn't able to dig it up again.'
0:25:27 > 0:25:31It's a romantic idea, isn't it? The fire that destroyed London,
0:25:31 > 0:25:34preserving this perfect time capsule of its past.
0:25:34 > 0:25:35But the truth is,
0:25:35 > 0:25:38there's actually not much more evidence to support it, than
0:25:38 > 0:25:42any of the other theories that have been suggested from time to time.
0:25:42 > 0:25:47In the end, the hoard of jewels discovered here beneath Cheapside
0:25:47 > 0:25:50is going to have to remain a mystery, and I think
0:25:50 > 0:25:55that's at least partially why we're still so entranced by it.
0:26:00 > 0:26:02The Cheapside Hoard is magical,
0:26:02 > 0:26:07alluring, truly wonderful. As you walk around the exhibition,
0:26:07 > 0:26:12you're constantly dazzled, not just by the beauty of the pieces,
0:26:12 > 0:26:16but by the tantalising traces of vibrant human lives.
0:26:19 > 0:26:22If I could take any piece home from the Cheapside Hoard,
0:26:22 > 0:26:26it would have to be this exquisite scent bottle.
0:26:27 > 0:26:34Made from gold, coated in enamel, and set with beautiful gemstones.
0:26:34 > 0:26:38You have Hungarian opals, Indian diamonds,
0:26:38 > 0:26:42sapphires - pink and blue - from Sri Lanka.
0:26:42 > 0:26:45When I saw it first, I instinctively wanted to pick it up
0:26:45 > 0:26:49and smell the scent. Obviously that evaporated hundreds of years ago,
0:26:49 > 0:26:53but the woman who owned it, how did she wear this scent bottle?
0:26:53 > 0:26:56Was it round her neck? Did she drape it off her dress?
0:26:56 > 0:27:00While driving through the smelly streets of London in those days,
0:27:00 > 0:27:03a smell from this bottle, was that her escape?
0:27:03 > 0:27:06This is a truly exquisite piece of jewellery.
0:27:06 > 0:27:10I hoped the lady who owned this treasured it as much as I do.
0:27:18 > 0:27:23One of the reason that we're so entranced by gold and gemstones
0:27:23 > 0:27:25is because their beauty never fades.
0:27:30 > 0:27:33But I think the jewels of The Cheapside Hoard
0:27:33 > 0:27:35offer something even more compelling.
0:27:39 > 0:27:43A magical glimpse into the vanished lives of those who have gone before.
0:27:48 > 0:27:55Their pride, greed and deceit. Their love, joy and devotion.
0:27:56 > 0:28:00All expressed through these objects of timeless beauty.
0:28:11 > 0:28:13Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd