Part of the story that disappears
Simply using his phone, a “treasure hunter” has the possibility of obtaining archaeological sites characterized by “blue zones”. He can quickly know the position of a concentration of a underground heritage. “These areas are prohibited for prospecting. There is a regulation to follow. Each property must be identified, dated with more or less certainty and georeferenced. Obviously, the Piller declares nothing and removes a whole series of objects which can inform about the archaeological potential of a place. It is the syndrome of the beast and nasty collector as the case that occupies us, that is to say that the individual keeps objects in a small display.. If they are not hidden, they are generally sold on the internet. “There is a phenomenon that has appeared with social networks. Some have an extremely mercantile approach. Most people who are chased by French customs are those who make residents”.
Minimum training
In addition to the possible identification of the author of the looting, the ASBL Community Historia aims at two objectives. First, the sanction, already mentioned above. “The AWAP (Walloon Heritage Agency) is starting to start legal proceedings against looters, but it is a stammering. The repression will necessarily go through the judicial route and by the fact that the Minister endeavors to deploy swords to note the offenses. The important thing is that local police can be made aware of it and that archaeologists are also empowered to highlight the facts of looting”. Then good practice. “A detectorist is not an archaeologist. It cannot be improvised. But if we want to legitimize his place a little, we must give him reading tools and a way of working that is closer to scientific discipline. In my opinion, the detectorist must benefit from a minimum scientific training, because there are in particular precautions to be taken according to the materials”.
A copy of the complaint was sent to Marie-Christine Marghem, the bourgmestre of Tournai and to Benjamin Brotcorne, the alderman in charge of the archaeological heritage which reacted: “If all this turns out to be supported and corroborated, my role is to ensure that this behavior is no longer reproduced. According to my recent contacts with the authorities concerned, it appears that there would have been no authorization for wild excavations with which the ASBL” complains “. The question now asked by the elected official is who will build civil party and in what way the case is found in a “logically” correctional court.
