15th January 2008, 10:16 PM
Gary,
finds in the topsoil have been an issue for archaeologists for a number of years, their migration from archaeological contexts and their use as identfiers of potential sites is not a new issue. Studies have shown that topsoil finds do not migrate very far from the point of deposition, therefore all finds regardless of their 'found' environment, not just the non-ferrous metallic component of a finds assemblage, are of interest to archaeologists.
It is of increasing value for field archaeologists to have a CSCS card, perhaps if detectorists also held a similar H&S qualification they could demonstrate that they understood a similar level of basic site awareness.
Detectorists may enjoy a similar level of professional respect as archaeologists if they undertook a degree course in their subject, if such a thing exists. If not, build the metal detector hobby to a point where it stops being a hobby and becomes a discipline in its own right. You would have to build this level of interest to a point where universities are willing to offer courses in the subject, this took archaeology many years to achieve so be prepared to lobby hard.
A DVD advising archaeologists on the correct metal detecting machinery to buy and its usage would be most helpful, perhaps you could make this DVD in conjunction with the many qualified archaeologists who are already metal detector owners and who use metal detectors on archaeological sites as a part of their normal working day.
If you ever wondered how you get triangles from a cow, you need buttermilk and cheese and an equilateral chainsaw. Half Man Half Biscuit
finds in the topsoil have been an issue for archaeologists for a number of years, their migration from archaeological contexts and their use as identfiers of potential sites is not a new issue. Studies have shown that topsoil finds do not migrate very far from the point of deposition, therefore all finds regardless of their 'found' environment, not just the non-ferrous metallic component of a finds assemblage, are of interest to archaeologists.
It is of increasing value for field archaeologists to have a CSCS card, perhaps if detectorists also held a similar H&S qualification they could demonstrate that they understood a similar level of basic site awareness.
Detectorists may enjoy a similar level of professional respect as archaeologists if they undertook a degree course in their subject, if such a thing exists. If not, build the metal detector hobby to a point where it stops being a hobby and becomes a discipline in its own right. You would have to build this level of interest to a point where universities are willing to offer courses in the subject, this took archaeology many years to achieve so be prepared to lobby hard.
A DVD advising archaeologists on the correct metal detecting machinery to buy and its usage would be most helpful, perhaps you could make this DVD in conjunction with the many qualified archaeologists who are already metal detector owners and who use metal detectors on archaeological sites as a part of their normal working day.
If you ever wondered how you get triangles from a cow, you need buttermilk and cheese and an equilateral chainsaw. Half Man Half Biscuit