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Romano
British silver denarii hoard found in
Lichfield in 1998
This
law, which applies in England, Wales, and
Northern Ireland and came into effect in
September 1997, replaced the common law of
Treasure Trove. Under the new law four
specific categories of treasure are defined:
1) Buried objects
that contain at least 10% of gold or silver,
and are at least 300 years old when found.
2) Coins that contain
at least 10% gold or silver and are at least
300 years old, and groups of ten or more coins
found together even if they have less than 10%
gold or silver and are at least 300 years old.
3) Associated objects
- any object, of whatever composition, that is
found in the same place as, or that had
previously been together with, another object
that is treasure.
4) Objects that would
have been treasure trove under the old law but
are not specified above.
The following are not treasure: -
-Objects whose owners can be traced.
-Unwanted natural objects, even when found
with treasure
Once an object has
been found it has to be reported to the
coroner within 14 days of discovery or within
14 days of realising it is treasure. From here
it will be studied and a decision made whether
or not a museum wishes to acquire it, or
whether it can be returned to the finder.
For
more information about treasure and local
archaeology finds why not explore the
Potteries Museum & Art Gallery website? |
