Demystifying the Treasure Act

What is Treasure?

While many people think of treasure as a hoard of gold or precious stones, the archaeological definition is more specific. According to the Treasure Act 1996, archaeological treasure includes:

• Any metallic object, other than coins, that contains at least 10% precious metal by weight and is at least 300 years old.
• Prehistoric metal finds that contain any amount of precious metal.
• Any group of two or more prehistoric metallic objects of any composition found in the same place.
• Two or more coins from the same place, provided they are at least 300 years old and contain 10% silver or gold. If the coins contain less than 10% precious metal, there must be at least 10 of them.  
• Any object found in the same place as treasure.
• Objects less than 300 years old that are made substantially of gold or silver, have been deliberately hidden and their owners are unknown.
• Any object over 200 years old that provides significant insight into national or regional history, archaeology or culture.

What to do if you find Treasure?

If you discover an artefact that you believe meets the criteria for treasure, you are legally obliged to notify the coroner in the relevant district within 14 days. It is recommended to first contact your local finds liaison officer (FLO), who can assist with the initial identification, and report the find to the coroner on your behalf. The British Museum’s Treasure Section will also be notified. As part of the process, key information must be gathered, including the find spot, the date of discovery, and the contact details of any finders, landowners and occupiers. 

Each find must be accompanied by a specialist’s descriptive report, including their opinion on whether the find is likely to be treasure. If it is concluded that the find does not qualify as treasure, the artefact(s) will be returned to the finder or landowner. If the find is classified as treasure, museums have the right to acquire it through a valuation and acquisition process.

Valuation and acquisition of the Treasure

If a museum expresses interest in acquiring an artefact registered as treasure, a valuation and acquisition process will take place. The artefact is valued by independent expert valuers to inform the Treasure Valuation Committee, which recommends a value to the Secretary of State for Culture Media and Sport. If no objections are raised by other parties (such as the finder or landowner), the Secretary of State will confirm the value, the museum will be invoiced, and the interested parties will receive payment, typically within four months. If objections are raised, a challenge can be made by supplying new and relevant evidence to support the need for re-evaluation.

Impact on development

Archaeologically, the term treasure refers to portable artefacts that meet specific criteria. Because they are portable, they can be carefully removed from the ground by experienced archaeologists and may not affect the final outcome of the development.

Finding items identified as treasure may result in the need for further archaeological investigations on the site, which will need to be discussed and agreed with the relevant county archaeologist. The discovery of such exciting finds on a site can be of great public interest, and their study and preservation can be counted as a public benefit with opportunities for enhanced public engagement, such as talks from the archaeologists.

Further information

Contact Konstantinos Bompotis

Take a look at our earlier blogs for more information about archaeology and the planning and development process:

Archaeology and the planning process

What is predetermination archaeology?

Archaeological planning conditions explained

Archaeological Written Schemes of Investigation: an explanation