Wednesday, 23 December 2020

Detectorists Pretending to be "Archaeologists"

  

Archeologia militarna v.2... (43 zdjęć)
Dodany 09 grudnia 2017 19:37:27 przez kruku


Question for the PAS. Is "responsible metal detecting" really just a matter of sticking to the law and filling in your holes? Can we get a better definition of what is meant by responsible treatment of the archaeological resource than your superficial Code of Best Practice for Responsible Metal Detecting (which the majority of UK tekkies ignore anyway)? 
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5 comments:

  1. Brian Mattick23 December 2020 at 01:15

    "Can we get a better definition of what is meant by responsible".

    Er, no you cant. What's more, I'll bet you a Viking hoard hoiked from church land and not shared with the church that PAS won't answer the simple question: "is responsible detecting beneficial"

    Which of course it isn't, but never did an unanswered question reverberate more powerfully.

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  2. Paul Barford23 December 2020 at 01:29

    What is the point of a public-facing archaeological body that does not see properly informing public opinion about archaeology as its main raison d'etre instead of seeing itself as there in a passive and subservient role to mop up the mess made by artefact hunters?

    What does my Mum or your kids get from having a PAS?

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  3. Brian Mattick23 December 2020 at 02:43

    Well to be fair to PAS, mopping up the mess made by artefact hunters was the sole reason it was founded.

    Although NOT by falsely minimising it by telling taxpayers and landowners the mess is only caused by "a minority".

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  4. Hougenai23 December 2020 at 05:06

    By the same token PAS was not set up to 'Advertise the hobby', which appears it's most successful achievement.

    Advertise the hobby is polite speak for 'Thar be treasure in them thar hills, pastures and adjacent to/on known archaeological sites. Tax free windfalls are there to be had by anyone with time on their hands'.

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  5. Brian Mattick28 December 2020 at 23:00

    It's true. Websites, books, press articles and broadcasts are all meant to hammer home that responsible detecting is a good thing for the country (but never actually saying so as it's not what they think) but the only message that is received is that metal detecting is a good thing for ME.

    The bitter proof of that lies in the fact detecting thrives more where there's a PAS.

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