From the article...
"Under French law, the couple are allowed to keep the treasure because it was found on their own property, Mr Aigouy said.
Instances of people finding treasure in lately England usually result in the treasure being split between the landowner and the government.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2011/jun/20/badge-dug-field-medieval-treasureKing, who has always been interested in history and spends days researching his finds in museums and archives, reported it under the Portable Antiquities scheme which encourages metal detectors to report all their archaeological finds, but she proved to be silver and so legally treasure which must be reported. When valued - the price will be shared between King and the landowner - Robinson hopes the British Museum will acquire her to find a permanent resting place in its medieval galleries
The Treasure Act of 1996
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treasure_Act_1996The Treasure Act of 1996 is an Act of Parliament designed to deal with finds of treasure in the England, Wales and Northern Ireland; it does not apply in Scotland. It legally obliges finders of objects which constitute a legally defined term of treasure to report their find to their local coroner within fourteen days. An inquest led by the coroner then determines whether the find constitutes treasure or not. If it is declared to be treasure then the owner must offer the item for sale to a museum at a price set by an independent board of antiquities experts (Treasure Valuation Committee). Only if a museum expresses no interest in the item, or is unable to purchase it, the owner can retain it.
'Treasure' is defined as being:
All coins from the same hoard. A hoard is defined as two or more coins, as long as they are at least 300 years old when found. If they contain less than 10% gold or silver there must be at least 10 in the hoard for it to qualify.
Two or more prehistoric base metal objects in association with one another
Any individual (non-coin) find that is at least 300 years old and contains at least 10% gold or silver.
Associated finds: any object of any material found in the same place as (or which had previously been together with) another object which is deemed treasure.
Objects substantially made from gold or silver but are less than 300 years old, that have been deliberately hidden with the intention of recovery and whose owners or heirs are unknown.
Under English law a landowner has sole title to any archaeological artifacts found on his or her property. Legitimate metal detectorists come to an agreement with the owners of the land they detect on to share any proceeds from treasure sales.
Successful cases involving the Treasure Act include that of the Ringlemere gold cup. Non treasure finds are the remit of the Portable Antiquities Scheme.
Portable Antiquities Scheme
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portable_Antiquities_SchemeThe Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) is a voluntary programme run by the United Kingdom government to record the increasing numbers of small finds of archaeological interest found by members of the public. The scheme was begun in 1997 and now covers most of England and Wales.
It is primarily focused on private metal detectorists who through their hobby regularly discover artifacts that would otherwise go unrecorded. Members of the public can also report objects they have found and finds of non-metallic objects are also covered by the scheme. Finds that legally constitute treasure are dealt with through the Treasure Act, 1996. This however concentrates on precious metals, prehistoric base metal, and finds in association with them. Non-prehistoric base metal and non-metal finds would not be recognised as treasure and therefore be unrecorded. The PAS exists to fill this gap.
The scheme funds the posts of Finds Liaison Officers (FLOs) at county councils or local museums to whom finders can report their objects. The FLO is qualified to examine the find and provide the finder with more information on it. He or she also records the find, its function, date, material and location and places this information into a database which can be analysed. The information on the findspot can be used to organise more research on the area. Many previously unknown archaeological sites have been identified through the scheme and it has contributed greatly to the level of knowledge of the past. FLOs maintain close links with local metal detecting societies and have contributed to a thaw in relationships between the detectorists and archaeologists who often previously disdained one another.
The find remains the property of the finder or the landowner who are free to dispose of non-treasure finds.
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