Avocational finds collecting by members of the public – whether with or without metal detector – has been increasing consistently for decades in Europe. In Austria alone, c. 30.000–40.000 metal detectorists are active according to suppliers’ best estimates. While annual finds numbers are estimated to be in the several millions (of which over 95% may be modern waste), many of the finds made certainly are of archaeological interest and likely to fall under the compulsory reporting duty for portable antiquities of § 8 (1) Austrian Monuments Protection Law. Yet, only c. 200–300 finds reports are submited annually to the heritage authorities in Austria.

This is in stark contrast to some other European countries: the PAS in England and Wales, for instance – responsible for an area just 1.6 times the size of Austria – receives roughly 50.000 finds reports and registers roughly 75.000 finds per year. PAN in the Netherlands – responsible for an area just slightly under half the size of Austria – has recorded over 100.000 finds in the 9 years since 2016. DIME in Denmark – just slightly over half the size of Austria – in the same time recorded roughly 280.000 finds.

Such differences raise questions: Why does public finds reporting work significantly beter in some countries than in others? What specific steps can be taken to improve public finds reporting, both quantitatively and – equally importantly – qualitatively? What are the benefits of effective public finds recording systems, to finders themselves, heritage agencies, and the archaeological discipline? An international comparison of public finds reporting systems and practices in different European countries and what lessons can be learnt from those who have developed more effective public finds reporting systems thus seems highly desirable.

Submissions of papers dealing with issues regarding the avocational collecting of finds by members of the public, and the reporting of such finds, are warmly invited. We are particularly interested in papers engaging with the following issues:

• Number and quality of public finds reports in a particular country and/or transnational/geographical comparison of numbers and quality of finds reports. Papers examining the reasons for why numbers and quality of public finds reports are comparatively low or high in particular countries would be especially welcome.
• Benefits of public finds reporting, whether for the finders themselves, archaeological research, heritage management & conservation, but also e.g. the benefits of avocational finds collecting on health and well-being, local identity generation, etc.
• Developments in public finds reporting in the recent past, whether changes in legislation, policy, or practice, in a particular country or countries, with a particular focus on whether they have helped improve public finds reporting and any lessons can be learnt from them.

Paper proposals

Please submit paper proposals (with a c. 300 word abstract) by email to: raimund.karl@univie.ac.at. Deadline for submissions: 21 April 2025.

Presentations at the conference should be c. 15 minutes, with 5 minutes of discussion thereafter.

Conference registration

Atendance of the conference is free of charge, but places are limited due to space restraints.
If you are interested to atend (whether with a paper presenta􀆟on or without), please register by email to: raimund.karl@univie.ac.at

Provisional programme

Conference venue

The conference will be held at the Archaeology Centre of the Austrian Federal Monuments Authority in the former Carthusian Monastery Mauerbach, which is located on the outskirts of Vienna in a beautiful part of the Vienna Woods.

By public transport, it can be reached by Bus No. 450, leaving from Hütteldorf (U4 subway station) every half hour (at 5 and 35 minutes past the hour). The bus ride takes c. 30 minutes to Mauerbach (Busbahnhof). From there, carrying along the main road, it is a c. 10 minute walk to the venue.

If arriving by car, the conference venue address is Bundesdenkmalamt, Archäologiezentrum Mauerbach, Kartause Mauerbach, Kartäuserplatz 1, 3001 Mauerbach, Österreich