Detectorist finds unique Celtic figurine with giant moving penis

The unprecedented discovery of a bronze figurine of a man with a disproportionately large 'tipping' penis was made at a mass detector event by Paul Shepheard in Haconby, Lincolnshire. The pendant dates from the 1st century AD and is the only example of its kind from the Iron Age.

Paul Shepheard attended the club's detector event with his wife Joanna. While she found a medieval groschen, Paul discovered an unprecedented artifact. It was lying at a depth of about 25 centimetres. At first he didn't recognise the find - as a former farm equipment restorer, Paul thought it looked like a cotter pin used to secure wheels on carts. But then he noticed the face and realised it was a figure. According to experts, the find is unparalleled in the world: a hinge at the root of the penis allows the penis to move and mimic an erection.

The figure is bronze, measuring 5.5 cm in height and 1.2 cm in width. It represents a stylized male figure with an oval face, flat nose and slit mouth. His left arm is bent and he holds a pouch or jar on his chest. His right arm is crossed over his torso clutching a giant phallus - even in the 'flaccid' position, it is considerably longer than the man's short indicated legs. The eye behind the head defines the find as a pendant.

The fact that this is the first such figure with a penis on a movable hinge from antiquity, given the known enormous scale of phallic symbol production in the Greco-Roman world, shows how significant and rare a find this is. The pendant does not meet the definition of a treasure because it is not made of precious metal. It can therefore be auctioned privately. The estimate from Noonans auction house, which is holding the auction on 9 March, is provisionally set at £800 to £1,200 (about 21,000 to 32,000 crowns).

"Dating from the Celtic period of the 1st century AD, it is a representation of the fertility god, probably derived from the Roman god Mercury. The male figure with an oversized penis on a hinge was thought to have symbolic powers of good luck and warding off evil spirits, and may also have served as a locking mechanism for e.g. Nigel Mills, auctioneers' adviser at Noonans in Mayfair, added.

Roman Nemec

Sources: msn.com, thehistoryblog.com, noonans.co.uk

Mr and Mrs Shepheard