Annual report 2009 - 2010

This document can be downloaded as a pdf (3MB).

The main achievements of the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) and the Treasure Act 1996 in the period of this report can be summarised as follows:

• 158,088 finds were recorded by the PAS in 2009 and 2010 (67,089 and 90,099 respectively). Since 1997 over 740,000 finds have been recorded on the PAS database (http://finds.org.uk).
• 1,638 Treasure cases were reported in 2009 and 2010 (778 and 860 respectively). Of those found in 2009, 34% were acquired by museums; the outcome of 29 cases is still to be determined.
• 113 parties waived their right to a reward in 71 Treasure cases in 2009, allowing them to be acquired by museums at no or reduced cost. Most PAS finds are returned to the finder.
• 88% of PAS finds found in 2009 and 2010 were found by metal-detectorists. Metal-detecting accounted for 95% of 2009 Treasure cases.
• 72% of PAS finds in 2009, and 74% in 2010, were found on cultivated land, where they are susceptible to plough damage and artificial and natural corrosion processes.
• 90% of PAS finds in 2009, and 88% in 2010, were recorded to the nearest 100m2, the minimum requirement for findspot information to be most useful for Historic Environment Records - the key record holders for information about the historic environment.
• New sites discovered in 2009 and 2010 include a Mesolithic occupation site in Herefordshire, a Roman villa site in Oxfordshire, and Anglo-Saxon cemetery sites in Northumberland.
• Currently 197 people have full access to PAS data for research purposes, and the data has been used in 12 large-scale research projects, 47 PhDs and 196 other pieces of research.
• 368,858 unique visitors in 2009 and 2010 (158,266 and 210,592 respectively) visited the PAS websites, making over 677,876 visits (306,568 and 371,308) and 7,794,035 page requests (3,560,941 and 4,233,094).
• Publications associated with the work of the PAS in 2009 and 2010 include PAS reports in Britannia, Medieval Archaeology, Post-Medieval Archaeology, and A Decade of Discovery (British Archaeological Reports 520), The Staffordshire Hoard and The Frome Hoard (both British Museum Press).
• 3,622 outreach events were organised in 2009 and 2010 (1,741 and 1,881 respectively), including talks, finds days and exhibitions. These were attended by at least 176,048 people (71,226 and 104,822), including 42,659 children (12,865 and 29,794).
• During 2009 and 2010 the PAS's Finds Liaison Officers had regular contact with 177 metal-detecting clubs, attending 1,619 club meetings in 2009 and 2010 (732 and 887 respectively).

This annual report was also published in the December issue of Treasure Hunting. Limited copies are available from your local finds liaison officer.