The Treasure Act 1996 (as amended in 2023)

Treasure Act changes that  were passed by Parliament and came into law on 30th July 2023. These amendments remove items found on some Church property from the provisions of the Act, and add a new class of Treasure, called ‘significant’ to the existing law. All of the other existing classes of treasure remain unchanged. Here is the legislation.  There is a very useful and clear summary of the ins and outs of the current status of this hacked-about legislation on the  Metal Detectorist UK (Norfolk Suffolk Metal Detecting Group) website that deserves to be made more accessible (have a look at their admirable Risk Assessment page too).

The following finds are Treasure under the Act, if found after 24 September 1997 (or, in the case of category 2, if found after 1 January 2003):

• Any metallic object, other than a coin, provided that at least 10 per cent by weight of metal is precious metal (that is, gold or silver) and that it is at least 300 years old when found. If the object is of prehistoric date it will be Treasure provided any part of it is precious metal.
• Any group of two or more metallic objects of any composition of prehistoric date that come from the same find (see note below).
• Two or more coins from the same find provided they are at least 300 years old when found and contain 10 per cent gold or silver (if the coins contain less than 10 per cent of gold or silver there must be at least ten of them). Only the following groups of coins will normally be regarded as coming from the same find: Hoards that have been deliberately hidden; Smaller groups of coins, such as the contents of purses, that may been dropped or lost; Votive or ritual deposits.
• Any object, whatever it is made of, that is found in the same place as, or had previously been together with, another object that is Treasure.

Any object that would previously have been treasure trove, but does not fall within the specific categories given above. Only objects that are less than 300 years old, that are made substantially of gold or silver, that have been deliberately hidden with the intention of recovery and whose owners or heirs are unknown will come into this category.

Note: An object or coin is part of the 'same find' as another object or coin if it is found in the same place as, or had previously been together with, the other object. Finds may have become scattered since they were originally deposited in the ground.

If found on or after 30 July 2023, a find may be potential Treasure if it does not meet the above criteria but is made at least partially of metal, is at least 200 years old, and provided exceptional insight into an aspect of national or regional history, archaeology or culture by virtue of one or more of the following:

• its rarity as an example of its type found in the United Kingdom
• the location, region or part of the United Kingdom in which it was found, or
• its connection with a particular person or event

A find may also be Treasure if it does not, on its own, provide such an insight, but is, when found, part of the same find as one or more other objects, and provides such an insight when taken together with those objects.

see also Geoffrey Bennett 'Changes to the Law of Treasure', The Institute of Art and Law, April 14, 2023