...and in great news - this is what £250,000 can buy you in a museum. We could get FOURTEEN of these for one £3.5 million payout to a detectorist & landowner for their lucky Tudor Heart locket find... 🤔 #Archaeology 🏺 www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Today's news: What happens when museums can't afford to buy coins... 'Auctioneer, David Guest said the "stunning" coins were sold to "bidders from all over the world and exceeded my expectations".' Bidders. From. All. Over. The. World. 😡 #Archaeology 🏺 #Detecting www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Yes, it's early, but I'm going all in this year because... well... *this year*!! ...cos it was filmed in Snorbens & explains Christmas tree outside Boots in July! ...cos Puss in Boots was crying out to be done! 🤣 P.s. Snorbens also setting for Sainsbury's xmas ad! youtube.com/watch?v=Y2MX...

“[…] so to put the Treasure reward figures in context: we are looking at around 150-250 museum curators who could have been salaried for the amount paid out in 2023. Instead, this ‘reward’ money was paid out to individual finders and landowners as cash gifts for their hobby.“

My lovely brilliant friend @sallypointer.bsky.social does it again... These look brilliant fun to do in the run up to Christmas! 🍊 youtu.be/kdkzzsGDcaM?...

This 👇

I am literally *crying*!!! DUNCANNNNN! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Come have a holiday! Detect the best land! Stay in a nice hotel! But... "Simply put, don't find [anything] that's too rare, and you can get it exported!!" Wooooohooooo! The system is f*cked. 😡 #Archaeology www.colchestertreasurehunting.co.uk/E/export.htm

We have such a toxic problem with the protection of UK heritage. Are we even living up to our expectations under the Valletta Convention?

Some fabulous talks at this FREE day symposium on Thursday 20th November. You can even hear me chatting about how some tiny tool marks can give us some big insights into the torc makers of the Iron Age. #Archaeology 🏺

Hidden in one of my favourite ever papers is a nugget about the UK almost refusing to sign #Valetta due to the (illegal) #antiquity trade & (unlicensed) #metaldetecting. It’s all baked in to UK Govt policy and Willem Willems recorded it, the absolute legend. www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

"A spokesperson said funds had to be raised by April 2026 and they needed the public's help to secure it." AKA You give us your hard earned cash & we'll give it to two people. BTW £3.5 million is c.100 curator salaries. #Archaeology #Detecting www.bbc.co.uk/news/article....

Ouch. Important work here by @tessmachling.bsky.social highlight the eyewatering amounts being to paid to people for their hobby 😳 the system isn't working, except it would seem for a few finders ⬇️

Honestly. We all need to read this. The amount of money apparently being spent, which could instead be being invested in our museum services is horrific. Next figures from DCMS/PAS are due in the next month or two. How bad will they be? #Archaeology 🏺 #Torcs #Detecting

Following on from last week's blog on Treasure 'rewards', I've been trying to dig deeper into the numbers. Although very preliminary, what I've found does not make for happy reading... #Archaeology 🏺 #Detecting #Treasure bigbookoftorcs.com/2025/11/04/l...

This is an intriguing counterargument to the value of treasure trove law, which we in the U.S. often look at admiringly. (Full caveat: we have many fewer shiny things buried in the ground in the continental U.S.)

Chasing the money trail on legally processed treasure cases in England & Wales reveals the eye watering public expense of owning / buying heritage that belongs to the nation from the people who found it. As always @tessmachling.bsky.social is asking the hard but right questions

Following on from last week's blog on Treasure 'rewards', I've been trying to dig deeper into the numbers. Although very preliminary, what I've found does not make for happy reading... #Archaeology 🏺 #Detecting #Treasure bigbookoftorcs.com/2025/11/04/l...

Ok.. going to try and extract some more Treasure figures... Wish me luck... 🤞

At the very least the costs of conservation and necessary research should be deducted from any ‘reward’ payable to the finder

Amazing figures here that are seldom discussed or looked at wholesale. As always following the money shows the full scale of this with eye watering figures being paid from public funds to private individuals for artefacts that collectively belong to the nation A system under strain morally corrupt

How do I get myself into this stuff?? 🤣 Trying to interrogate the Treasure figures when everything is reported many years later, and nothing is straightforward. But, it's truly horrifying... 1/6 #Archaeology

History is ALL of ours, it shouldn't be about "mine & money" All significant historic finds should be instantly state owned & automatically given to museums for EVERYONE. Not lost to public Museums who cant afford it & watch it go to private collections. Take out the "My Precious" attitude !

Consider what these organisations could be doing with funding if they weren't using it to pay off private citizens for an object from our shared past. Why is this hobby being allowed to divert such large funds?

"Funding came from Arts Council England, V&A Purchase Grant Fund, Leeds Philosophical & Literary Society, and the Friends of Leeds City Museums." AKA The detectorist and landowner were paid an undisclosed amount to hand over what should be ours... #Archaeology 🏺 www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

With huge thanks to my friend Patrick for spotting this. The new MGM Robin Hood series. Sean Bean as the Sheriff of Nottingham... ...wearing a horse-bit as a cloak fastener!!!! Crying!! 🤣🤣🤣🤣 #Archaeology 🏺

Cat wins t'internet today. ❤️

Sooooo, the king will pay for that scum-bag's new accommodation and will make 'appropriate provision' for him. Why? Kick him out. End of. This is an arse covering exercise rather than true justice.

Honestly, this is ruddy farcical. Once again, very content with my Green choice. 💚 www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Great post from @tessmachling.bsky.social on metal detecting & #archaeology here ⬇️

.. and who might we need to be 'saving' this from? Well, he's a cafe owner in Brum and the person whose land he found it on. Who will each be paid cool £1.75 million of our money. #Archaeology 🏺 www.britishmuseum.org/about-us/pre...

A great post from @tessmachling.bsky.social setting out the scale of the UK metal detecting mess. Having no effective regulatory framework is incredible for a signatory of the Valletta Convention. There is no escaping the negligent leadership on the issue. License metal detecting now. 🏺🦣

The piece where I get to say everything that's bugging me about the world of detecting & archaeology & ask - why are we not more concerned about this? (Thank you to everyone who read through drafts & offered thoughts, advice and ideas.) #Archaeology #Detecting 🏺 bigbookoftorcs.com/2025/10/27/t...

Essential reading on the grim reality behind all those 'we're saving treasure for the nation' stories that the media churn out...

This is a really important read, on the debacle that is metal detecting in the UK, dispelling lots of myths. Your regular reminder, it is illegal to prospect, without a licence from the state,,for archaeological objects in Ireland using a remote sensing device

As always @tessmachling.bsky.social hits the nail firmly on the head with this piece highlighting significant issues that resonate with me & my career in PAS. Its worth reading the comments too especially @andyagate.bsky.social. The systematic under payment of FLOs highlights the tensions within

Useful account of some of the issues around metal detecting and the burden on FLOs and PAS. I like the idea of detectorists paying in for a licence - maybe this money could be used to provide a flat fee for any significant finds (if desired)

While I agree with @tessmachling.bsky.social wholly on this, the solution is more complicated than it may seem - legislation will be seen as increasing state interference in what people do with their own* property. *Heritage should belong to the nation, but define heritage

An excellent and eye-opening read about the growing tensions between metal-detecting and archaeology/heritage conservation in England and Wales. Feels like something has to give here.

An important contribution on metal detecting & archaeology in England and Wales. (N.B.: Metal detecting is illegal in Ireland, & subject to fines & even imprisonment, under the National Monuments Acts) #MedievalSky 👇🏻

The piece where I get to say everything that's bugging me about the world of detecting & archaeology & ask - why are we not more concerned about this? (Thank you to everyone who read through drafts & offered thoughts, advice and ideas.) #Archaeology #Detecting 🏺 bigbookoftorcs.com/2025/10/27/t...

Farage's exploitation and politicisation of abused women is vile. 😡

This is REALLY good to see. Too many colleagues were utterly misrepresented in this awful film, & in narrative surrounding it They deserve to have their names cleared. BBC News - Substantial damages awarded to academic over Steve Coogan Richard III film - BBC News www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Oh Jamaica... 😔 Having been in a Cat 1 before I can only imagine what this will do to... terrifying.

Woohooo... this is fabulous news! 💚

Brilliant! ❤️

Ok. Yes. This made me snort! 🤣🤣🤣

Ok, in advance of another blog I'm in the process of writing about a few things that have been bothering me (😇) I thought it might be good to put all the other torc 'politics' stuff on one page in Big Book of Torcs. So here it is... bigbookoftorcs.com/who-owns-tor... #Archaeology 🏺

Funny that - the security assessment was based on the potential for violence from the *Maccabi* fans ... Grim. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

YES!!!!!!! 🎉🎉