PORTABLE ANTIQUITIES SCHEME Annual Report 2005/6 PORTABLE ANTIQUITIES SCHEME ANNUAL REPORT 2005/6 Foreword 2 Preface 4 Key Points 6 Introduction 8 Learning and Outreach 10 Understanding the Past 21 Recording Finds 110 Contacts and Organisations 126 CONTENTS 1 I am very pleased to introduce the eighth Portable The Portable Antiquities Scheme has shown itself to Antiquities Scheme Annual Report, which outlines be extremely successful in breaking down social barriers the work of the Scheme between 1 April 2005 and and involving people who traditionally feel excluded 31 March 2006. from the work of the sector. This year a socio-economic analysis of postcode data for finders who have This report covers the final period of Heritage recorded archaeological finds with the Scheme shows Lottery Fund funding, which ended on 31 March 2006. that 47 per cent of people recording objects with the As from this date my department, via the Museums, Scheme since 1997 are from groups C2, D and E, which Libraries & Archives Council and with support from compares favourably with museum visitors (31 per 62 local partners, has taken responsibility for funding cent). The Portable Antiquities Scheme is undoubtedly the Portable Antiquities Scheme. This will ensure that successful in attracting new audiences to museums. the Scheme continues to make a vital contribution to This was demonstrated by the fact that 46 per cent the Government’s aims of increasing and broadening of visitors to a series of Fabulous Finds Days, held the impact of culture now and for future generations, nationwide to launch Museums & Galleries Month in as well as enhancing access for children and other April 2005, said that they had never previously been priority groups. The Museums, Libraries & Archives to that museum before. Council has done an excellent job managing the Scheme and ensuring its long-term funding to date. The Portable Antiquities Scheme offers the only I would also like to thank the British Museum, which, proactive mechanism for recording archaeological since April 2006, is managing the Scheme on behalf finds found by the public, without which information of the Museums, Libraries & Archives Council, and the about these finds would be lost, to the detriment of other members of the Portable Antiquities Project archaeological knowledge. It is indeed remarkable Board & Advisory Group. that the Scheme’s Finds Liaison Officers have recorded a further 57,556 objects in 2005/6; a two-fold increase The extent of the Portable Antiquities Scheme’s on 2003/4. In no small part this is due to the 5,855 learning and outreach work is a testament to its people who have offered finds for recording this year. success. A 2006 User Survey showed that satisfaction Of these, 59 per cent were brought forward by that the Scheme is meeting its aims has dramatically metal-detector users (who actively search for improved since 2004. It is impressive that in 2005/6 archaeological objects) but a significant minority the Finds Liaison Officers and other members of the offered for recording were found by other finders, Scheme have talked to over 13,390 people about such as field-walkers or people out walking or digging finds and their importance for understanding our past. in their gardens. It is excellent news that since the They have also organised events and activities, such as protocol on the transfer of Portable Antiquities Finds Days, object handling sessions and archaeological Scheme data to Historic Environment Records – the work, for a further 14,123 people. I was impressed key record holders for information about the historic to learn that 86 per cent of finders who attended environment – was agreed last year the data is starting Portable Antiquities Scheme Conservation Workshops to be used by the HERs so that it can play its role in said they had learned something new and had been protecting the historic environment. inspired. Further, a monthly average of 14,405 people visited the Portable Antiquities Scheme website The Government recognises that the Portable (www.finds.org.uk) in 2005/6. Together, this outreach Antiquities Scheme plays a major role in supporting work demonstrates that the Scheme has enormous the Treasure Act through its network of Finds Liaison potential to reach new and varied audiences. Officers. It is largely down to their work that we have seen a substantial rise in the reporting of Treasure It is a priority of my department to enhance access to Finds. It is truly impressive that the rate of reporting culture for children and give them the opportunity to of potential Treasure has risen by an average of 154 develop their talents to the full and enjoy the benefits per cent since the expansion of the Portable Antiquities of participation. It is therefore particularly encouraging Scheme across all of England and Wales in 2003. that this year the Scheme offered 5,439 children a different and exciting opportunity to learn and get As I said last year, the Portable Antiquities Scheme involved. I experienced this first hand in October 2005 offers an impressive array of benefits and I hope that when I launched the Portable Antiquities Scheme’s the Scheme is able to continue to go from strength to children’s website – PAStexplorers (www.pastexplorers. strength and build upon its excellent work to date. org.uk) – an innovative learning resource aimed at 7 to 11 year olds. The fact that 77 per cent of children who experienced the educational work of the Scheme said they understood more about things from a long time David Lammy, Minister for Culture ago shows the benefits of this type of learning. November 2006 FOREWORD 2 00 The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) The Portable Antiquities Scheme is an important and and the British Museum have been key supporters valuable part of MLA’s vision to improve people’s lives of the Portable Antiquities Scheme since it was by building knowledge, supporting learning, inspiring established in 1997. MLA co-ordinated the Scheme’s creativity and celebrating identity, and ties in well successful Heritage Lottery Fund bid (which funded with other MLA programmes and responsibilities such the Scheme in 2003/6), sponsored the Scheme through as Renaissance in the Regions, Inspiring Learning for the last Government Spending Review (which funds All and Export Licensing. Likewise, the Scheme adds the Scheme in 2006/8) and will do so again in the value to the British Museum’s aim to advance public forthcoming Government Spending Review (2008/11). understanding of its collections and the cultures they Likewise, the British Museum has provided a home for represent through programmes such as Partnership UK; the Central Unit and now manages the day-to-day between November 2003 and January 2006, 155,000 running and administration of the Scheme on behalf people were able to learn about the work of the of MLA. Everyone involved in the Portable Antiquities Scheme through the British Museum’s Buried Treasure Scheme is delighted with the support the Government exhibition which toured five museums in England and has given it to date and we are grateful for the Wales. Given the positive contribution this Scheme Minister’s kind words in his foreword to this report. has made to our understanding of the past, it is hoped that the government will continue to support the MLA and the British Museum jointly chair the scheme in the forthcoming Spending Review. Portable Antiquities Advisory Group (formerly Portable Antiquities Project Board & Advisory Group), the consortium of national bodies that co-ordinates the Project and takes it forward. A recent and notable achievement of this group is agreement on a Code of Conduct for Responsible Metal Detecting in England and Wales which, for the first time defines Chris Batt, Chief Executive Officer, the Museums, ‘responsible metal-detecting’ and provides a clear Libraries & Archives Council and unambiguous definition of what constitutes best practice, and has been endorsed by all key archaeological bodies, metal-detecting and landowners’ organisations. This group has also discussed other important issues related to the aims of the Scheme, such as metal-detecting rallies, agri-environment schemes and the illicit recovery and sale of antiquities. Neil MacGregor, Director, the British Museum On the latter issue MLA and the British Museum (with the support of the Art & Antiques Unit, Metropolitan Police) have now agreed a protocol with eBay, by which eBay will remove from its site tainted cultural objects, such as unreported potential Treasure. However, it is the Finds Liaison Officers who, with the support of their managers and local partners in the Scheme, deliver the project’s aims and objectives on the ground, as the Minister has stressed in his foreword. It is well recognised that the Finds Liaison Officers, and their assistants and volunteers, work diligently and professionally to ensure the Scheme is as successful as it is, helping to foster good relations between finders, archaeologists and museum professionals, widen an interest and understanding of archaeological finds, and ensure that the data collated is of the maximum benefit for advancing knowledge of the past. It is a tribute to the success of such partnerships that the Portable Antiquities Scheme continues to break down barriers, and encourage learning and knowledge for the benefit of all. PREFACE 4 5 The main achievements of the Portable Antiquities the PAS normally reaches with its own publications. Scheme (PAS) in the period 1 April 2005 until The Searcher organised an annual competition – 31 March 2006 can be summarised as follows: ‘The Nation’s Greatest Detecting Finds’ – which promoted finds recording with the PAS. Extent of the Scheme: A network of 36 Finds Liaison Officers (FLOs) covers the whole of England Website: There have been over 53 million user hits and Wales.