Resonox wrote:
Another downside is..the show then leaves a lot of sites "advertised" as a place rich in finds which might encourage the less scrupulous to go and have a rummage on the off-chance of finding something of value(I mean something floggable not as a historic item)which they might pocket and lose the in situ archeology...and maybe even claim to have found elsewhere...muddying the waters of our knowledge even further.
True, but the amount of research that goes into finding likely spots is prodigious, and if you don't want to do your own research you can always buy a CD Rom "containing sites and finds which some people don't want you to see" ! http://www.metal-detectors-searcher.co.uk/ (BTW the police were called out to the field next to Woodhenge on Monday night - three nighthawks at work. Grrrr.)