Instruction manual

METAL
DETECTING AND
THE LAW
It is also important to keep the detector head as close to the ground as
possible. ideally, you should
"iron" the ground with the search head of the
detector,
so that you do not lose any detection range.
Similarly, if
you work slowly and carefully you should be able to distinguish
the faint signals as well as the clear-cut signals and further increase your
finds.
The technique of getting the best out of your detector is not learnt overnight.
You need to get as much experience as possible so that you can recognise
every kind of signal. Indeed, a good detector operator can often tell you what
is being detected before it is unearthed.
Sweeping - For Example:
For extremely small object searching, such as coins. rings, nuggets, etc.
lower the search coil to within one inch of the ground. Sweeping the coil from
side
to side in a straight line in front of you. Keep the coil at a constant height
as
you sweep from side to side. Move the coil at the rate of one foot per
second (see Diagram
2).
After you have become familiar with the instrument the sweep rate may be
increased
to two feet per second. The optimum sweep rate must be
determined by each operator.
The detector should be held comfortably in the hand, with the coil held as
closely
to the ground as possible. As the detector is scanned from side to
side in front of the operator, the search coil should be advanced
approximately two-thirds the diameter of the coil. This keeps the operator
moving ahead, and it allows some overlapping
of each sweep. This
overlapping ensures that nothing will
be missed. It is well to note here that
the operator SHOULD
NOT RUSH. This is one of the most common mistakes
made
by detector users. If you rush, you will not adequately cover the ground.
The rights of the finder fall into two distinct classes. The first relates
to objects
that have recently been lost, and the second
to items of gold or silver which
are subject, or might be subject,
to the laws of the Treasure Trove.
In the first place, where the object has been recently lost and found and is
valuable,
it should be handed to the Police as soon after it has been found as
possible. The Police will then attempt to locate the owner. if they succeed in
locating the owner, he has the legal right to the object and is not legally
bound
to reward the finder. That is a matter for the owner's conscience.
In the event of the Police failing to locate the owner they will probably return
the object
to the finder. If, however, the owner makes a claim for the object at
a later date, the finder must return the item to the owner.
If the owner is not located the finder has the best rights
to ownership,
provided that the object was not found
on private property, in which case the
owner of the land often has a better right than the finder. The solution here,
of
course, is to obtain permission beforehand and to come to some agreement
with the landowner with regard
to the division of any finds.
If on the other hand, the find of gold or silver can be proved
to have been
deliberately concealed. with a view
to recovery at a later date, the find comes
under the laws of the Treasure
Trove. If the objects cannot' be proved to have
been deliberately concealed, the find cannot
be declared Treasure Trove.
Usually this point centres around the quantity of coins in a hoard, or whether
the find is
in a container. Obviously, if there are a hundred or so coins in a
pot, they were almost certainly deliberately concealed.
If, however, there are
only one or two coins, it is more likely that they were lost accidentally.
If the objects are declared Treasure Trove, the finder has no need to worry, for
he
is rewarded with a cash settlement to the full market value of the find.
When the objects are not declared Treasure
Trove, the owner of the land on
which the find was made usually has a better claim
to ownership than the
finder.
In Scotland all newly discovered ancient objects of all metals. whether
deliberately concealed or not are subject
to the same procedure as Treasure
Trove finds in England.
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