Preparing for an Archaeological Survey on Your Land
Wherever there's a possible heritage site, it's the legal and moral responsibility of the landowner to play their part in preserving it. In many cases, this doesn't become a concern until building work or other forms of transformation are planned for the land.
If you suspect your land has some kind of heritage value, it's important to schedule a professional archaeological survey to determine its value. This will also allow you to work out what needs to be done next and how it will impact the land.
Before archaeological assessments begin, there are a few things you should do to prepare. Follow these steps, and your survey will go ahead without problems.
Find out about permissions
You might need to obtain permission before a survey is carried out, or at least notify the relevant authorities. In a lot of cases, the archaeological team will do this on your behalf, but it's important that you check with them to find out. If they leave it up to you, they may still be able to point you in the right direction.
If the suspected site stretches beyond your property boundary, you should let adjacent landowners know what's going on, and that they should also arrange surveys.
Compile your research
Not everyone is interested in local history, but if you are, it could come in useful. Collect any information you have on the land's history and its former uses, plus anything else that could be of interest to archaeologists.
You should also gather together any interesting artefacts you've found on the land, with details on where you found them if possible. Add in any other useful findings, for example, if a certain part of the land has been a hotspot for metal detecting.
Prepare the area
Clear the land as much as possible, but be careful moving anything that could be an artefact—or which might be concealing one. It's most important to get rid of rubbish and any smaller pieces of building debris, as long as it's from more recent constructions.
Take some photographs
Often, your archaeological company will want to visit the land before the survey begins so they can assess and plan in advance. This isn't always possible, however, so sending them some detailed, good-quality photos of the area is very helpful.
If you have found historical artefacts on the land, you should also send some pictures of them so they have a better idea of what may be found on the site.