A Rolling Stone Gathers …Treasure

Former Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman, who left the band in 1993 because he didn’t want to tour anymore, has found an interesting way to fill the time he used to devote to the life of a rock star – treasure hunting.

In fact, Wyman has designed his own signature model metal detector.

Wyman said he’s always had an interest in archeology and found lots of odd bits buried in the grounds of his home in Suffolk over the years. In the early ’90s he bought a metal detector, discovered the site of a Roman homestead and was hooked.

When his daughter showed an interest in the hobby, he found that it was hard to find a detector that was suitable for her. So he contacted the company that made his detector and asked if they would work with him to design one. They said yes, of course – who wouldn’t?

The Bill Wyman Signature Detector was two years in the making. Wyman was involved in every stage of its design and development and did most of the field testing.

So what’s the payoff from all of this? Besides "hundreds of coins going back to Roman Britain, blades from 3,000 years ago and gold coins from the 1300s worth £1,000 each," Wyman is now considered to be an authority on metal detecting in the U.K.

He has even written a book on the subject titled "Bill Wyman’s Treasure Islands."