London, Nov 17 (IANS) A three-year-old boy in Britain found a 500-year-old gold locket while playing with a metal detector. The locket could be worth 2.5 million pounds.

The locket found by James Hyatt, who is now four, is believed to be one of only four of its kind in Britain and could have belonged to royalty.

"He (James) was so excited when he realised he had found real treasure.

"He is one of the luckiest people ever. He'll put his hand down the sofa and pull out a tenner," The Sun quoted James's father Jason as saying.

The 2.5cm pendant has a picture engraved on the front of the Virgin Mary clutching a cross and five bleeding hearts on the back. Its sides carry the names of the three kings who visited Christ after his birth.

James, who lives in Billericay, Essex, was out walking with his father and grandfather when he asked if he could use the metal detector.

James said: "It went beep, beep, beep. Then we dug into the mud. There was gold there."

A government body will assess its value and the proceeds from its sale will be split between the landowner and James's family.