Monday 29 September 2014

Focus on UK Metal Detecting: The Rape of Weyhill Fair


Alfred Sisley "Weyhill Fair"
Heritage Action continue the story of the disruption and erosion of the surface evidence for the centuries-old Weyhill Fair. They call it 'Weyhill Fair: The End':
Weyhil Fair, sorted!  Lots of good finds (wot a surprise!) but lots of complaints about too much iron on the site (that'll be some of the History then!) Also lots of complaints about fellow detectorists misbehaving
they were leaving lots of unwanted finds by the side of the hoik holes, instead of adding them to the collectables in their haul. This is an excellent illustration of the sort of selection that goes on when a fragile and finite part of the  archaeological resource is treated as an artefact mine. Heritage Action are also not surprised to learn: "unfortunately our FLO could not be with us because she was returning from her honeymoon in Italy", not half as much as the commercial artefact hoikers who'd apparently not checked on FLO availability until the last moment when it was too late to make other arrangements.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

As usual Paul, you display a much greater degree of charity towards these people than I feel.

The "other arrangements" should have been in place all along. It's called a reserve. This is OUR history, they owe us that at least if they are taking it for themselves. The idea that if a FLO has a puncture on the way to a rally and there is no back-up plan in place to safeguard our heritage AND they simply carry on regardless strikes me as just pitiful.

 
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