The use of metal detectors subject to prefectural authorization
The use of metal detectors for archaeological purposes is subject to prefectural authorization. The law of 18 December 1989 made the use of metal detectors for archaeological purposes subject to the dual authorization of the State and the owner of the land.
Article L. 542-1 of the French Heritage Code states that “ no one may use equipment for the detection of metallic objects, for the purpose of research of monuments and objects that may be of interest to prehistory, history, art or archaeology, without first having, obtained an administrative authorization issued according to the applicant’s qualifications and the nature and modalities of the search ".
The purpose of these regulations is to protect archaeological sites because they provide complete historical information only if they have not been altered.
As soon as research is undertaken using a metal detector, the signal emitted in the presence of a metal object encourages digging the ground to clear it, which isolates it from its archaeological context. The possibility of dating it is thus lost through stratigraphy and drawing conclusions from the arrangement of objects in the archaeological layers. The act of digging is tantamount to an unauthorized search and therefore liable to prosecution under the heritage code and the penal code.
Detection is not a hobby.
The application for authorization is to be formulated online.
This obligation is a response to the technical evolution that has popularized the use of metal detectors and contributes to the protection of the archaeological sites that constitute our collective memory.
Contact at the DRAC Grand Est
Regional Archaeological Service
For further information, please use the DRAC contact form, with the subject "Archaeology: metal detectors" and specifying your department.
Partager la page