A FOUR-YEAR-OLD boy with a lucky streak discovered an incredibly rare religious artefact while learning how to use his grandfather’s metal detector.

Little James Hyatt found the beautiful 16th-century gold reliquary pendant, used to hold religious relics, while on his first metal detecting outing with his dad Jason and his grandad.

After the trio realised how important their discovery was, the reliquary was handed in to the authorities and was recently declared to be treasure trove at an inquest.

Jason, 34, said: “My son is one of the luckiest people ever!

“If we go to the doctor’s he’ll put his hand down the side of the sofa and pull out a tenner, so this is just the sort of thing that happens to him.”

The tot discovered the treasure in Hockley in May 2009, while on a visit to Jason’s parents, after James, who was only three at the time, began asking questions about his grandfather’s metal detector.

They took the youngster out to let him try the equipment for himself.

Jason, a designer who lives in Billericay, with wife Rebecca and their son, said: “After about five minutes we got a buzz and we dug it up, and I thought it must be some kind of wind-up at first.

“It was about eight inches down, we could see the metal glinting, so we gently pulled it out and there it was. Dad was blown away, in 15 years doing it as a hobby he’d never found anything like it. My initial reaction was just shock and disbelief – it took a while to sink in.”

“James was so excited when he realised he had found real treasure.

“He’s too young to realise the significance of what it is but he can tell you step-by-step how he found it.”

Now the item has been classed as treasure it will be valued before interested institutions, including the British Museum and Southend Museum, are given the option of buying it.

The proceeds are likely to be split between the Hyatts and the owner of the land where the reliquary was found.

The Hyatt’s discovery has been identified as a gold reliquary pendant, dating back to the first half of the 16th century.

It would probably have been owned by either a high-ranking clergyman or a member of the Royal Family.

Its front appears to depict Mary, the mother of Jesus, holding a cross and a shroud, while the other side shows the five bleeding hearts of Christ.

Engraved around the edges are the names Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar, the three biblical kings who followed the Star of Bethlehem to the site of Jesus’s birth.

Reliquaries were used as containers for supposedly holy relics, such as a thorn from Jesus’s crown of thorns or a piece of the wooden cross he was crucified on.

Scientists found “plant material” inside this one, which could be wood and is being tested.

Sixteenth century religious reformers such as Martin Luther opposed the use of relics since many had no proof of historic authenticity. Many in Europe were destroyed by Calvinists or Calvinist sympathisers during the Reformation, being melted down or pulled apart to recover precious metals and gems.

Only three other reliquaries of this kind are known to have survived, including a similarly-engraved find known as the Middleham Jewel, which was sold at auction for £1.3million in 1986 and later sold to the Yorkshire Museum for £2.5million.