DetectingWales.com

I heard the news on Radio 2 about 3 O'Clock this morning & again on the telly when I got home at 07:30 & yet again our hobby is under the spotlight re "Nighthawking".

Why?

We never hear about the Trawlers that net under sized fish or the Shooters who go out & shoot every living thing in their scopes or the people who constantly speed on our roads so why is it always about the MINORITY who Nighthawk?

Why can't they for once make a programme advertising all the good that we do, perhaps show all the finds recorded with the PAS or the UKDFD. How about the people who are called upon to retrieve items for people & even the treasure items we have in Museums!

It stinks  >:(

The thought has occurred sometimes , when an eminent archaeologist passes away, the relatives sell up the collection! Usually these collections are rare items in the best possible condition, how do they accumulate them?

Hi Steve

I posted this peice some time ago, I liked the peice on Nighthawking so i thought post it again for the newer forum members to have a look at




 Reproduced by kind permission from Mr Colin Hanson FID

HELPING THE LICENSED GRAVE-ROBBERS

When i found my 1st hammed coin i didnt even know what an hammered coin was,it turned out to be an Elizabeth 1st penny.As i got more interested in the hobby,i started buying various detecting mags and it got me thinking this hobby harms nobody and is enjoyable and good fun,you start reading stories in the mags from Archaeologists who now we know as not Archaeologists But Licensed grave robbers paid by us the tax payer.
Stories of metal detectorists being scum,out to plunder and rob sites of there artefacts with only one thing in mind,to find goodies to sell.
Reading verious stories became very depressing and then along came the Time Team,two men in a trench,Meet the ancestors and god knows what else.
Out of ten people you ask on the street if you ask them what are theyre thoughts of digging up the bones of our Ancesters,putting them in a cardboard box,giving them a number and sticking them in a warehouse,nine out of ten and sometimes ten out of ten would think this is awful.

I think from a metal detectorists point of view its about time we stopped pussy footing around Archaeologists.They are trained often on the Dole whilst going on the courses,there are of course those who are not trained and are not qualified and are self taught,taking money from the heritage which comes from the tax payer.

There are too many Archaeology groups,I say to them put your own house in order before accusing others.Why dont archaeologists work at the weekends and do it like most of us do ,as a Hobby?

Metal Detectorists put money into the society from day they buy a metal detector Batteries food and pay for rallying ect. Archaeologists continuously Take
They are jealous,they have bad archaeologists amongst themselves who steal from their own sites the divers on the Mary rose is a classic example. according to some articles on pages 11 and 12 of the FID bulletin concerning the Andover Hampshire site, i would say thatsthe site must have been badly managed.On a daily basis you could detect that site and dig the finds and leave nothing for the night hawkers to take at night,then the following day when digging is taking place,detect it and remove those finds!
To say that metal detectorists come in at night ona regular basis is a load of b*** ***t

Its the archaeologists means of continuously blaming metal detectorists,its the only way they can make us look bad, where is the...innocent untill proven guilty? Its been mentioned that detectorists are comming in of a night time and leaving a lot of holes,the archaeologists should think themselves lucky that the night hawkers dont come in with JCB,s Hymax,s or dumper trucks and 4x4,s spilling diesel and contaminating the soil like archaeologists do .
The people they find or capture are guilty,but that migth be there own staff.
Of course there are people who go out at night time,but with all honesty if you spend 8 hours in the day detecting site you could find very little who in there right mind go,s out in the middle of the night in the freezing cold pitch black walking around ?
Our hobby does not endanger anyone at all,its not a dangerous hobby for anyone whats so ever.
I feel very strongly that archaeologists should not romove bones and remains or our ancestors.if its on a site where thereis going to be building and its necessary to move them,then they should be moved to the nearest field from the site It should be done with inderpendent persons overseeing it.
If there is no building development or road structure going on then things like Tumuli Barrows,Saxon graveyards ect.... should not be dug up by anyone they have been there for a thousand years or more.
Archaeology should be done as an hobby and money raised locally in the area of interest and not by local authority.
I agree that we should have Archaeologists to an extent but where does metal detecting come into archaeology?
What i would suggest to the Metal detecting world is tell everyone,your friends and family that your tax money is being wasted on archaeologists,geophysics ect.......I feel this strongly of the remains being removed or dug up that im hoping for an appointment with the Archbishop to try and start ceasing of this disgraceful robbery and im writing to the Heritage Secretary to tell her that i dont want my tax money paid to Archaeologists and to ask her to reduce there funding even further because of the credit crunch and other economic problems.
I have even considered writing to the Queen and asking her if she,d like her ancesters dug up to see what their remains look like and if she says no,then why do we not have the right to say no as well ?.

I HATE GRAVE ROBBERS

artical sent in by a very angry FID member

In Norway as well we got the same probs with prejudices amongst "old school" arkies.

In Denmark however, a whole different story !
Here arkies are spokesmen for our hobby,(even the National Museum) and even us up here in Norway get Christmas cards where they thank us for the cooperation !
Had 3 trips to Denmark in 08, and last time, at the Viking fortress Aggersborg (“The King’s Fortresses“ project  http://www.kongensborge.dk/ (http://www.kongensborge.dk/) ) the arkies waited for us with bottles of snaps...(!)
I was amazed, and told the Project Manager this could never happen in Norway !

He said : "Well, i`m at work, you spend your free time helping us voluntary, try to have a good time with us this weekend, we are very thankful!"  ;D

At Jelling, a month earlier, we felt like kings, arkies boiling coffe and cooking meals for us, lots of beer and good fun in the evenings- great !

Detecting in danish television : http://www.tv2regionerne.dk/reg2005/player.aspx?id=430612&r=6 (http://www.tv2regionerne.dk/reg2005/player.aspx?id=430612&r=6)
(Never mind the language, pictures tell more than words!)

Next project will be at Lolland (danish island) in April, detectorists from Norway, Sweden, and Denmark amongst arkies even from England, Poland and Germany.
Denmark is like heaven for  detectorists !
Hope soon we will have our own Nordic Portable Squeme...(think so)

Its always the bad minority that gives the rest of us a bad name hey,

Jerramy Vines had me on his radio programme 2 years ago,  i said a bit then but was getting blown to bits in the storms so went on to looking for things for them instead,
Alan

I have met good arkies and bad arkies .I have met good detectorists and bad ones .Thats life!The only people that are just bad are the government.NOW THERE THE REAL ROBBERS!and i hate that little git on time team you know the one who done bit part acting and now thinks hes a arkie hates detectorists but always uses one on the programme! HYPOCRITE! ::) >:(