UK Metal Detectorists Praised by UK Gov't

HUGE BOOST IN RECORDED FINDS OF TREASURE

More than 20,000 archaeological 'finds' - which would otherwise have gone unrecorded - were logged last year under new procedures, according to a report published today by Arts Minister Alan Howarth.

Recorded finds totalling 20,698 - including coins, pottery and jewellery - came from the Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages, as well as the later Roman and Medieval periods.

Alan Howarth paid tribute to the metal detectorists - responsible for declaring more than 95 per cent of all treasure finds - whose willingness to co-operate with the new system have helped make it such a success.

These new discoveries, together with a seven-fold increase in the number of gold or silver 'treasure' items, mean that experts, the education sector and the wider public have never before had access to so much archaeological material - our 'hidden heritage' - to help understand how life was lived by our forebears. The county Sites and Monuments Records, which are the key record-holders for understanding our historic environment, also benefit.

Speaking at the launch of the reports at the British Museum today Alan Howarth said:

"The hundreds of thousands of archaeological items found by the public each year are Britain's hidden heritage. The Government is committed to ensuring that these items - and the information they bring us - are properly recorded and preserved for the benefit of generations to come.

"Our success depends, of course, upon the continued support of the metal detectorist community and their willingness to volunteer their 'finds' for recording. I am very grateful to them for their enthusiastic support of the new system.

"There is a real public fascination with archaeology and the detection of 'buried treasure'. I want to ensure that the system for recording and interpreting their finds expands to build further on this enthusiasm."