local tv: metal detectorists vs archaeologists lock

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Paul Barford P
Paul Barford Jun 1, 2007 19:23:24
Replying to kevmar

kevmar wrote:
Would you have another go at detecting
if only on a beach paul? I know you enjoyed your button hunt/s on land,
and granted the xlt isn't the easiest machine to use so you did quite well,
I can understand why you wouldn't want that model yourself, but given time you might just grasp it. Regards, Kevmar.
juamei wrote:
Ok, lets do some maths togther. As a detectorist you will be better placed than me to answer some of the essential information.
[…] I'm led to believe a survey of detectorists by detectorists exists which gave approximate answers […] so perhaps someone reading could provide that?
kevmar wrote:
There is and it's my work, and so belongs to me, so anyone wanting to use it would (if they follow the law) and don't plagiarise ask my permission first. I will consider all applications on their merit
I believe the request has already been made. While your own contributions here so far have not touched at all on the figures discussed here (they have solely been of the “she calls you Laurel and Hardy-”, “Barford’s got a big black pronged detector like me-” “thought that up driving along the A303-”, “you’re twisted agenda-” - type comments), your detectorists pals are having a bit of a problem accepting HA’s figures for the rate of erosion of the archaeological resource due to artefact hunting and their implications for the image of the hobby. They say the figures are flawed despite all the care put into creating them.

We know you have done a study based on information collected from fellow detectorists which would answer Juamei’s questions. In fact we also know that this survey was actually done in order to have facts and figures to quote against your critics (specifically Nigel and myself – that is what you said on UKDN when you gathered the information). So it looks as if the time has come to bring out your big guns and present that information. Unless of course it actually transpires that the survey showed something different from what you hoped and presents a picture which is worse than the rate shown on the HA counter… (!). Does not countering the HA figures in defence of "metal detecting" not count as a meritorious use of the results of that survey? That is after all what all those people counted their 'beeps' and bottle tops and entrusted the results to you for. Are you now going to let your mates down and withold that information when it is most needed?

Paul Barford