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Metal Detecting Hobby Talk
        May 2020         Metal Detecting Hobby Talk News Brief                                             Volume 11 Number 122
Metal Detecting Hobby Talk Support The Hobby
I would like to point out to the News Brief readers that there are a number of organizations taking on the challenge against various types of legislation dealing with metal detecting and gold prospecting. MDHTALK's recommendation is to visit their website and give strong consideration to joining the fight. In some cases your support may be to send emails and / or write a letter to specific legislators or to provide funds to help with the fight. Here are the organizations and a link to their website.
Go to the Join The Fight MDHTALK Webpage to read more about each of these organizations

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May

What is a News Brief?
The news brief provides a brief look into any news event. The intent of the news brief is to provide you, the reader, with news clips on what was taking place in the hobby last month. To read the whole story select the Article Link or go to MDHTALK.org. There are more news stories placed on the MDHTALK website for April the news stories listed in the MDHTALK News Brief are just a portion of all the hobby related news reported the past month.  The news Brief is now available in Adobe PDF format, there is a link at the top of this webpage. The news brief is no longer emailed; it is only available on the MDHTALK website and can be downloaded.

The Website's featured article for this month is: What is the Investment Cost to Participate in Metal Detecting?
By Lee Wiese
Download to Read the Complete Article

Download this Excel Spread Sheet and Calculate your Investment Cost by placing your cost numbers in the Excel spread sheet.

Disclaimer. The investment cost for detectors and accessories are high lighted in this article's investment cost table and are based on prices found on the internet. The detector brand, detector model and accessories you chose may reflex a different price than what is shown in the investment cost table and this would be normal. The dollars amounts in the investment cost table should only be considered a benchmark for you to follow; your final dollar investment may be either greater or less than the value shown in the cost table. No specific detector brand or model are high lighted since this article is not trying to provide direction on any specific detector or accessory to purchase just hobby investment cost.

Introduction. Have you every wanted to know what it cost to enter the metal detecting hobby and start detecting? The following article and investment cost table will provide you with some insight to this question with cost benchmarks associated with each of the different areas of metal detecting. The investment cost table should provide you with a two column analysis (good and best) for an area, however, for some areas there will be just one cost analysis column. One column will define a good investment and the other column a best investment and each column has dollar figures for comparison.

Before getting involved in metal detecting you should do some up front research rather than just go out and purchase a metal detector. Your first detector need not be expensive but should be purchased for a specific type of detecting. The various areas and sub-areas of detecting are high lighted below and are used for the column headings in the investment cost table at the end of the article.

Metal Detecting Areas
  • Coinshooting
  • Jewelry
  • Beach and Water
    • Freshwater Beach & Water
    • Saltwater Beach
    • Saltwater (Scuba Dive Detecting is not Covered in the Investment Table but Discussed in the Article)
  • Relic
    • Relics and Old Coins
    • DIV
    • Cache (Cache Detecting is not Covered in the Investment Table but Discussed in the Article)
  • Gold Prospecting
  • Competition (Competition Detecting is not Covered in the Investment Table but Discussed in the Article
Hobby Related News

General U.S. and World Wide Hobby News
  • Offers on lost wedding ring include buy one get one. Article Link
  • Navy vet finds remains of 1700s shipwreck in Bordentown. Article Link
  • Local woman finds grenade while gardening. Article Link
  • Did Union soldiers ever camp in Church Hill? Article Link
  • YouTube Restoration Videos: Preserving Or Destroying History. Article Link
  • Rocky Neck State Park in East Lyme. Article Link
  • Spending isolation unearthing buried treasures. News Video
  • What’s open and closed this week? Trails, parks, beaches in Southern California. Article Link
  • Coronavirus New Jersey: Wildwood Beaches, Boardwalk Closed Until May 1 Due To Pandemic. Article Link
  • Coronavirus self-isolation activities should not include gold prospecting, officials say. Article Link
  • ‘The Curse of Oak Island’: Rick and Marty Lagina Get Taste of Treasure as Centuries-Old Ring Unearthed? Article Link
  • Mum finds Mule Dollar Worth Thousands in Daughter’s Piggy Bank. Article Link
U.K. News
  • Rare silver penny found by detector sells in London auction. Article Link
  • Derbyshire: Auction of historic treasures remind us royal rivalries and traumas of long ago. Article Link
  • Police stop driver after making non-essential trip to Filey from Lancashire to go metal detecting. Article Link
  • Metal detecting group on a mission to share historical finds. Article Link
  • Bored mum finds 500-year-old gold coin worth £2,500 in back garden using son’s metal detector during lockdown. Article Link
  • Police stop Grantham metal detectorists on their non-essential trip. Article Link
  • ‘Struck gold!’ How archaeologists made ‘extremely rare royal find’ in Suffolk. Article Link
  • UK Citizens Found More Buried Treasure Than Ever Last Year, Including an 1,100-Year-Old Brooch and an Ancient Gold Ring. Article Link
North America Archaeology News
  • Archaeology: Saga of giant Mound Builders is a tall tale that won’t go away. Article Link
  • Archaeologists verify Florida's Mound Key as location of elusive Spanish fort. Article Link
  • Graduate research: Archaeology goes high-tech with LiDAR. Article Link
  • Rare silver penny found by detector sells in London auction. Article Link
  • Researcher Believes He Has ID'd Shipwreck in Maine. Article Link
  • Archaeology? What's its relevance in crises-filed world? Article Link
Other News Sources
  • American Digger Relic Roundup. For diggers and collectors of history. An hour long program every Monday Night at 9:00 PM eastern standard time. Join your hosts Butch Holcombe, Jeff Lubbert and Heath Jones as they explore the past. Learn more about Metal Detecting, Treasure hunting in all it's forms, and the preservation of history. April Pod Cast Link
  • American Mining Rights Assn is not a gold club but rather an advocacy group for miners and public land users to preserve and maintain their rights as they pertain to access to their public lands. March News
  • Archaeology and Metal Detecting Magazine present the BIG metal detecting podcast. A weekly show bringing all areas of history together with our guests, news and much more. April Pod Cast Link
  • Coin World - Numismatic and Coin Collecting April News
  • Garrett Searcher April Issue Release
  • Gold Prospectors Assn of America (GPAA) - News on legal issues for the gold prospecting community April NewsMarch Newsletter
  • Prospecting and Mining Journal (IMCJ) April News
  • The Archaeology and Metal Detecting Magazine The Archaeology and Metal detecting magazine are one of the lead online sites in their genre. Offering multiple platforms for Archaeological, Historical and metal detecting news, articles, research areas and much more. April News
  • 1715 Fleet Society May Newsletter
Jewelry Returns
  • The journey of a lost wedding ring comes full circle. Article Link
  • Debenham detectorist strikes gold and returns missing ring after 20 years. Article Link
  • Woman reconnects with deceased grandfather while trying to return stranger’s rings. Article Link
  • Husband reunited with missing wedding ring 20 years on. Article Link
W.W. Meteorite News
  • Meteorite spotted off I-77 ahead of Lyrid meteor shower this week. Article Link
  • Own a Rare Slice of the NWA 5000 Meteorite for $250,000 USD. Article Link
  • Fireball video: Huge fireball shoots over Europe 'I thought it was going to strike'. Article Link
The Regulation of American Archaeology
by Mark Nakahara, The Regulatory Review Website
“It belongs in a museum!” So says the young Indiana Jones in one of the hit movies from the 1980s after observing the unauthorized excavation of an important artifact.

But the question of who has the right to artifacts found in the United States depends on a number of factors. Government agencies, Native American tribes, and private property owners may all have a claim to artifacts depending on where they were found.

The first and most significant federal law governing archaeology is the Antiquities Act of 1906. This act was the first to establish penalties for illegal excavations, damage, or appropriation of American antiquities. These penalties, however, only apply when the illegal action takes place on land “owned or controlled” by the federal government. The act also authorizes the President to declare historic landmarks as national monuments.

In addition, the Antiquities Act lays out a permitting process for archaeological excavations on government lands. The power to grant a permit lies with the federal agency that has jurisdiction over the lands in question. In most cases, the U.S. Department of the Interior is in control, but for excavations taking place in forest reserves or on military bases, the permitting authority is the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Army, respectively. The act also grants these agencies rulemaking power for historic and archaeological sites within their jurisdictions.

Although the Antiquities Act plays an important role in regulating archeology in the United States, it suffers from weak penalties and lax enforcement. To build on the act and focus further on the protection of archaeological sites, Congress passed the Archaeological Resources Protection Act (ARPA) in 1979.

The Antiquities Act protects any “object of antiquity” but does not define the term or give examples. ARPA addresses the ambiguity over what is protected by defining the term “archaeological resource” to include “any material remains” of archaeological interest. It also provides numerous examples, such as pottery, weapons, tools, structures, and human remains. ARPA does not consider items under 100 years old, or paleontological items such as fossils, to be “archaeological resources.”

ARPA expands on the Antiquities Act in two other ways. First, it sets forth a more detailed permitting process for archaeological excavations on public lands. Applicants must describe the “time, scope, and location and specific purpose” of their proposed work to the head of the relevant agency. Native American tribes, however, are exempt from these requirements when excavating on their tribal lands.

Second, ARPA expands both the prohibited activities and the penalties laid out in the Antiquities Act. It prohibits trafficking in artifacts excavated illegally under either state or federal law. ARPA also increases the maximum criminal penalty for violations to $10,000 or up to one year in jail, and it imposes even higher penalties for repeat offenders or if the value of the archaeological resources exceeds $500.

ARPA grants rulemaking authority to the secretaries of Interior, Agriculture, and Defense. One of the Interior Department’s major rules provides further details of the permitting process, limiting the recipients of permits to “reputable museums, universities, colleges, or other recognized scientific or educational institutions.” Other regulations outline the process for storing excavated items and arranging exchanges with museums and universities.

The patchwork of laws governing archeological finds in the United States contrasts with the approach taken in other countries where the government asserts that it owns any object excavated within its borders. When it comes to artifacts found in other countries but brought into the United States, the U.S. Department of State’s Cultural Heritage Center oversees customs enforcement under agreements it has reached with these other countries.

The smuggling of antiquities across borders continues to be a serious issue in the art world. Museums in dangerous areas have lost thousands of artifacts to looting and subsequent sales on the black market.

Several groups within the State Department’s Cultural Heritage Center work to counter these threats. The Cultural Property Advisory Committee negotiates with other countries to make bilateral agreements restricting the import and export of antiquities. The Cultural Heritage Coordinating Committee works with diplomats and law enforcement to combat looting and smuggling. The Cultural Antiquities Task Force trains customs officials and law enforcement officers to identify smuggled artifacts and to enforce the laws concerning these items. These various groups also work with other agencies such as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Federal law on antiquities could be changing. In 2019, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Coordinating Oversight, Upgrading and Innovating Technology, and Examiner Reform Act of 2019. The bill focuses on bank security and money laundering but recognizes that archaeological looting has links to financial crimes. It includes a provision that would compel the Secretary of the Treasury to study “the facilitation of money laundering and terror finance through the trade of works of art or antiquities,” a tactic attempted by ISIS and other regimes.

The House bill is currently under consideration in the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. Bill HR 2514 Web Link
SEC. 211. Application of Bank Secrecy Act to dealers in antiquities.
Event News
Metal Detecting & Gold Prospecting Events.
Now is the time to start planning and getting your club's 2020/21 hunt information on the web. The sooner it is out and available to the metal detecting community the greater the chance for people to see it and give your event some consideration.
Select here to View
the Complete Event Details for May

       
Add Your Event Information Here
  • May 02, 2020 (One Day)
    Beaver, Pennsylvania
    Beaver County Detecting Club Open Hunt Postponed
    Beaver County Detecting Club
  • May 02, 2020 (One Day)
    Virginia Beach, Virginia
    33nd Annual Hunt Postponed
    Tidewater Coin and Relic Club
  • May 02, 2020 (Two Days)
    Columbus, Ohio
    Ohio Gold & Treasure Show Canceled
    GPAA Gold and Treasure Shows & Lost Dutchman's Mining Assn
  • May 09, 2020 (One Day)
    Pageland, South Carolina
    3rd Annual Carolina Coin & Token Shootout
    Sandhill Metal Detecting & Relic Club
  • May 09, 2020 (One Day)
    Longview, Texas
    9th Annual Piney Woods Relic Hunt Canceled
    East Texas Treasure Hunters Assn
  • May 12, 2020 (Five Days)
    Huntington, Oregon
    2020 Outing: Common Dig "Dirt Party" Postponed
    LDMA-Lost Dutchman Mining Assn
  • May 16, 2020 (Two Days)
    West Allis, Wisconsin
    Midwest Gold & Treasure Show Canceled
    GPAA Gold and Treasure Shows & Lost Dutchman's Mining Assn
  • May 16, 2020 (Eight Days)
    Stanton, Arizona
    2020 Desert Mayhem Week #1
    The Lost Dutchman's Mining Assn
  • May 16, 2020 (Two Days)
    Ocean City, New Jersey
    11th Annual Hunt
    ECRDA - East Coast Research & Discovery Assn
  • May 16, 2020 (One Day)
    Raidersburg, Montana
    17th Annual Rick Radke Memorial Metal Detector Hunt Postponed
    Headwaters Chapter of the GPAA
  • Check out your event before going it may have been postponed or canceled.
  • May 17, 2020 (One Day)
    Hoyt, Kansas
    Open National Hunt Canceled
    Topeka Treasure Hunters
  • May 22, 2020 (Three Days)
    Richland, Washington
    32nd Treasure Hunt
    Southeast WA Assn of Treasure Hunters (SWATH)
  • May 23, 2020 (Two Days)
    Sapulpa, Oklahoma
    49th Annual Indian Territory Treasure Hunt Canceled
    Indian Territory Treasure Hunters Club
  • May 23, 2020 (Two Days)
    Stoney Creek, Ontario, Canada
    21th Anniversary Southern Ontario Hunt Postponed for this year
    Rainbow's End MD Assoc, Thames Valley MD Club, Canadian Heritage Seekers & Chatham MD Club
  • May 23, 2020 (Eight Days)
    Stanton, Arizona
    2020 Desert Mayhem Week #2 The Lost Dutchman's Mining Assn
  • May 23, 2020 (Two Days)
    Columbus, Georgia
    Southeast Gold & Treasure Show Canceled
    GPAA Gold and Treasure Shows & Lost Dutchman's Mining Assn
 

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