The Roman head from Brackley

Welcome to the Portable Antiquities Scheme Website

The Portable Antiquities Scheme is run by the British Museum and Amgueddfa Cymru - Museum Wales to encourage the recording of archaeological objects found by members of the public in England and Wales. Every year many thousands of archaeological objects are discovered, many of these by metal detector users, but also by people whilst out walking, gardening or going about their daily work. Finds recorded with the Scheme help advance knowledge of the history and archaeology of England and Wales.

The gold coin hoard from Hertfordshire

Amazing discoveries.

New finds are uncovered and reported daily. It is easy to get involved with the Scheme and report your discoveries.

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Lucy Ellis with the Holy Island hoard

See more about what we do...

Our images on Flickr are liberally licensed. You might find something that you can use or learn more about our mission.

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Code of Practice

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Learn about coins

Iron Age
Roman
Byzantine
Greek & Roman Provincial
Early Medieval
Medieval
Post Medieval

Staffordshire Hoard papers

The Staffordshire Hoard symposium papers have been published for all to access and edited by Helen Geake. The hoard's records are being added slowly to the database.

Bronze Age object guide

Learn about Bronze Age objects, their form and function. This guide was written by Ben Roberts, Alessia Murgia, Emma Traherne and David Parker.

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Research in progress

The Scheme's database provides the basis of hundreds of research projects and has enabled the Scheme to gain funding for several large grants - Leverhulme and AHRC funding for instance.