A SCHOOLBOY from Notts has unearthed an English Civil War cannon ball in his garden.
Jack Sinclair, 10, of Westgate, Southwell, made the historic discovery after digging a 2ft hole in his garden, where his father had removed a tree root.
His spade hit something hard and with his bare hands Jack pulled the solid iron cannonball, which weighs around 8lb, from the ground.
He said: "I heard my spade hit against metal and at first I thought it was rock or stone. But then I realised it was something bigger.
"I had to lie on the ground and reach down to pull it out – it was all rusty and muddy."
Jack, who attends Lowes Wong Junior School, ran to tell his mother Louise Sinclair of his unusual find. She thought it might have been a bomb. "But we soon realised it wasn't," she added.
Jack's grandfather Graham Sinclair, of North Muskham, researched the artefact and took it to Newark and Sherwood District Council's Museum Resource Centre, in Newark.
It was there that experts were able to verify its authenticity.
The discovery has attracted attention in Jack's home town.
He has taken the object into school to show his classmates.
"I've always liked digging and looking for things," he said.
"When we go to Lyme Regis I like to hunt for fossils."
The ammunition, which dates back to the 1642-51 conflict, would have been used by a cannon known as a saker.
Southwell has strong links to the Civil War and King Charles I reputedly spent his last night of freedom at what is now the Saracen's Head Hotel before surrendering to the Scots on Kelham Bridge.
The cannonball will be the feature of a special assembly at Lowes Wong Junior School later in the year.
Tell us your stories. Email newsdesk@nottinghampostgroup.co.uk
