Quantitative Analysis of Open-Source Data on Metal Detecting for Cultural Property
Over the last several years, illegal metal detecting has been on the rise, resulting in historical artifacts being dug up, stolen and presumably sold. Not only is there the loss of the historical artifact itself, but also the archaeological record, including history and context of the site.
As an understudied activity, social media platforms and online forums present a unique opportunity to learn more about illegal metal detecting. This study analyzed the scale and intensity of illegal metal detecting in 13 different countries. ACCO expert Sam Hardy was able to gather valuable intelligence such as how many hours of labor is invested, how many illicit detectorists are active in each country, how frequently metal detectors find historical artifacts and how many historical artifacts are extracted on average. This study found that permissive regulation is ultimately ineffective in minimizing heritage sites, whether it’s illegal behavior or criminal damage, and that restrictive or prohibitive regulation is more effective at reducing the overall loss of archaeological evidence.
Authors:
Samuel Hardy