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Priceless lost ring found wedged in Rottnest Island reef

When a Perth woman lost her precious eternity ring off Rottnest Island in early April, it would have been easy to write the piece of jewellery off as a lost cause.

But Jacqui Caldwell wasn't willing to give up that easy.

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"In the shores of beautiful Parker Point yesterday I was devastated to lose my eternity ring," she wrote.

"It flew off my finger in the seaweed to the right of the bottom of the stairs. If you are a metal detector owner and are interested in helping me find my sentimental ring, I would happily reward you with $1000."

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Luckily for Ms Caldwell, Perth's own Ring Finder was soon on the case.

After getting a tip-off about Ms Caldwell's case, Sean Boddie started researching the Parker Point area.

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"With these recoveries, time is of the essence and they should be attempted as soon as possible, if the weather allows," he said.

"Jacqui had lost her precious [ring] about 3pm on Sunday and it was now Thursday- so the clock was ticking!"

A professional ring finder, Mr Boddie often takes up requests from desperate Perth locals to help find their lost jewellery.

"It is not by accident or luck... I ask the right questions, do the appropriate research on the location, weather, tides, form a plan and action it in order to achieve the result," he said.

So after a bit of research on the area, Mr Boddie made his way over to Rottnest Island.

"I took the first ferry to the island the next day, caught a bus out to Parker Point and went straight to the loss location from there."

Mr Boddie arrived at the search area and found the beach had been stripped of sand due to deteriorating weather conditions and a strong south westerly wind.

"[I] began to realise that this search may not be so easy," he said.

"I thought I might have a long day ahead ferreting out the various rubbish items from the cracks- and this is how it started to look as the first recovered signal was a $2 coin with a heavy green verdigris [green corrosion] - which indicated it had been lost here a very long time ago."

Boddie searched along the sharp limestone reef for a number of hours, but eventually got a good signal from a crack in the reef.

"After half a dozen scoops of sand and shells,[up] came Jacqui's ring- appearing in my hand as the sand washed away from it."

Ms Caldwell was 'overjoyed' when Mr Boddie returned her ring, and gushed about his help.

"This ring is one of those special rings that can't just be remade or bought again. It signifies my first born child, years of marriage to a gorgeous man, and a Silversmith's name which my daughter now carries. It is not something money can replace and I'm so grateful for [Mr Boddie's] efforts and enthusiasm in finding it. I feel whole again," she said.

While Ms Caldwell is reunited with her ring, Mr Boddie said he's still on the lookout for one slippery wedding band that he has yet to find.

"Incidentally I have been able to recover three out of four rings I have searched for on Rottnest this year, all in the water, and I am determined to one day find the one engagement ring that is still M.I.A!"

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