Help BAJR and the PAS at Thornborough

[Paul Barford]

quote:Originally posted by Norman Smith/BAJR Host

Cymru Museum in Wales have displayed up to 1,000 Roman coins for sale on the site this year.(whats the difference).

I suspect that in fact you mean the "Sygun Museum of Wales", a private collection which is part of the Red Dragon Heritage centre and Sygun Copper Mine tourist attraction in Snowdonia. It's a private collection containing stuff bought from dealers (and so those who are supplied by artefact hunters). Here's their current offer http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZmuseumofwalesQQhtZ-1. "We have no connection to the National Museum & Galleries of Wales in Cardiff". - that (unnamed) curator must have an extensive expertise to issue certificates of authenticity in so many different fields, from oil paintings to Chinese porcelain, oriental metalwork to MDd artefacts....

Here's their webpage http://sygun-coppermine.co.uk/index.htm

So no difference, these are artefacts from the market going back on the market. Have a look how many have any kind of provenance .....

Is that the "museum" you had in mind?

quote:
We are here to stay

Only as long as the rest of a 60 million public tolerates this kind of use of their archaeological record. And given the great public support for protecting the landscape around the Thornborough Henges, by the thoughtless choice of venue at this time, I reckon detectorists may well have scored a massive home goal in retaining that public sympathy and support.

You are right, many of us feel the hobby IS "linked to theft, damage, e-bay and finds not being recorded". In fact it is clear that in a certain sense it is. Between 60% (latest PAS estimate) and 80% (my estimate) of detectorists do not record any of their finds with the PAS, and of the rest we dont not know how many report anywhere near all of their finds. The hobby is closely linked (as a supplier and the collecting side of it as a consumer) to the antiquities market, and undeniably so is the "nighthawking" and trade in other illicit artefacts that undeniably goes on. Rallies do damage the evidence of artefact scatters, try reading up about the Marston Moor Rally to take one infamous example. Very few finds were ever reported to the PAS from the infamous "near Avebury" detecting rally last year, hundreds of people decended on the land, hoovered up the artefacts and then disappeared with them, most of them never to be seen again. Ask the FLO. Another home goal. Just inviting along a few archaeologists to this one does not solve the general problem.

And actually, I know quite a few archaeologists who know how to use their own metal detectors perfectly well as a survey tool.

Paul Barford