This is the lucky couple who tracked down a £1,000 engagement ring by following clues hidden around the capital's most romantic statues.

Grace Francis, 24, and her 23-year-old boyfriend Ethan Laver beat more than 200 competitors to track down the 200-year-old Art Deco diamond and white gold ring on Saturday (February 6).

The couple, who live in Woolwich, took just five hours to unravel 10 riddles as they dashed between statues before reaching the Victoria Memorial, outside Buckingham Palace, where the antique ring was waiting for them.

The Valentine's themed treasure hunt was organised for prospective fiancés or fiancées by the antiques website LoveAntiques .

Grace Francis, who works in event staffing, said: "The ring is utterly gorgeous. We literally sprinted from Eros in Piccadilly Circus to the final Victoria Memorial statue and were really tired by the end of it.

"LoveAntiques.com really built the suspense, and we knew another racer was hot on our heels!

They won a 200-year-old Art Deco ring with a diamond set in white gold

"We never in a million years thought we were going to win, but this really is the icing on the cake for our Valentine’s Day."

Hidden clues, all in the form of rhyming couplets, included:

  • "To win a princess' hand, this saintly man made a stand," which pointed the way to the St George and the Dragon statue in St John's Wood

  • "Found at a needle without an eye, a great love affair of a time gone by," directing loved-up hunters to Cleopatra’s Needle on Victoria Embankment

LoveAntiques emailed the location of the first statue to all registered participants that morning at 10am.

Competitors had to take a photo of themselves at each statue and send it to the company to receive the next clue.

Will Thomas, managing director at LoveAntiques.com, said: "We are thrilled that Grace and Ethan won the engagement ring. They are a couple who are evidently truly in love and couldn't be more deserving.

"It was a close call, with a couple of other participants only 10 minutes behind. We hope they'll stay in touch – and we'll be secretly hoping for a wedding invitation!"