“Metal-detecting can make an immense contribution to archaeological knowledge, if practised responsibly, and the vast majority of people are keen that their hobby has a positive impact.”(Michael Lewis, head of portable antiquities and treasure at the British Museum, following the announcement that a record amount of ‘treasure’ was found in Britain’s fields and ditches by member of the public during the past year). The point about this is that the metal detector as a tool can make a contribution, but collection-driven exploitation of the archaeological record, as its name implies, can only be exploitive and erosive. Which is probably why Mike Lewis does not call a spade a spade.
A blog commenting on various aspects of the private collecting and trade in archaeological artefacts today and their effect on the archaeological record.
"and the vast majority of people are keen that their hobby has a positive impact.”
ReplyDeleteThat's a classic twisting of words which has been PAS's hallmark for two decades.
"the vast majority of people are keen that their hobby IS SEEN TO HAVE a positive impact.” That would be impossible, given that most of them don't report their finds, but for deliberate efforts such as this to suggest otherwise.