22nd March 2014, 12:21 AM
Hello all, I'm a new-ish detectorist as well and I've learned a lot from reading this thread.
In my view, I'd say that there are many dectectorists up and down the country who would jump at the opportunity to work with archaeologists and help out in any way they can. There are loads of detectorists in total despair because permissions are so difficult to get, regular club digs are many miles away and local md-ing clubs are all closed-membership. It's no fun to have a £1,200 machine gathering dust.
But, and as pointed out earlier, I can understand that it's difficult to trust detectorists who may abuse access to archaeological sites. After all, there's money involved, it's inevitable I suppose. I just wish that archaeologists might spend more time with us, showing us how they do things. As well as educating, perhaps relationships could be made. Like every other group, detectorists have their own pillars of the community - such as those who run their own md-ing clubs up and down the country and have been active md-ers for many years. Also, I dare say, many md-ing clubs would welcome archaeologists - who might wish to learn md-ing skills to use on excavations - with open arms.
Anyway, thanks all for the great debate. The OP's ongoing bun-fight with the 'responsible detectorist' bloggers is entertaining enough, but it tends to be just that: entertainment (!).
Cheers
Joe
In my view, I'd say that there are many dectectorists up and down the country who would jump at the opportunity to work with archaeologists and help out in any way they can. There are loads of detectorists in total despair because permissions are so difficult to get, regular club digs are many miles away and local md-ing clubs are all closed-membership. It's no fun to have a £1,200 machine gathering dust.
But, and as pointed out earlier, I can understand that it's difficult to trust detectorists who may abuse access to archaeological sites. After all, there's money involved, it's inevitable I suppose. I just wish that archaeologists might spend more time with us, showing us how they do things. As well as educating, perhaps relationships could be made. Like every other group, detectorists have their own pillars of the community - such as those who run their own md-ing clubs up and down the country and have been active md-ers for many years. Also, I dare say, many md-ing clubs would welcome archaeologists - who might wish to learn md-ing skills to use on excavations - with open arms.
Anyway, thanks all for the great debate. The OP's ongoing bun-fight with the 'responsible detectorist' bloggers is entertaining enough, but it tends to be just that: entertainment (!).
Cheers
Joe