Reporting finds

‘Found items’ from anywhere in Scotland (on land, in buildings, from inland waters, from within harbours, and from the coast and other tidal waterways down to mean low tidal water level) which are not otherwise owned and for which there is not a demonstrable heir are the property of the Crown.

These finds are known as ‘portable antiquities’. Found portable antiquities must be reported to the Crown by the finder through the Treasure Trove Unit. If you do not report your finds, you may be guilty of theft or receiving stolen goods.

Landowners have no property rights to portable antiquities, and finders have no ownership rights to found objects which have not been reported through Treasure Trove.

Nearly all finds in Scotland are subject to Treasure Trove. Unlike England, they do not have to be made of precious metals. If you think you have found something of archaeological significance in Scotland, you must report it to Treasure Trove within one month of finding it.

A Treasure Trove online reporting form should be completed and emailed together with images of the find to treasuretrove@nms.ac.uk

Complete a Treasure Trove reporting form

Most things you find should be reported. Even the most unassuming object could be something important, so do not hesitate to send Treasure Trove images and a findspot.

If you find what you believe to be human remains, contact Police Scotland in the first instance.

Recovered wreck should be reported to the Receiver of Wreck.

Natural artefacts such as fossils or unworked animal bones are not covered under Treasure Trove and do not need to be reported. However you should follow the Scottish Fossil Code.

Read the Scottish Fossil Code from NatureScot

If you want to find more about what happens once you have reported your finds, you can read more about the process in the Treasure Trove Code of Practice. Removal of finds from Scotland

You must not remove finds from Scotland without permission from Treasure Trove.

Many burials, especially those dating to before the medieval period, only come to light when they are disturbed unexpectedly. 

If you discover human remains, you should immediately inform the local police. Do not touch the remains, and avoid disturbing the ground in their vicinity. Police will consult with the planning authority’s archaeologist if they suspect your discovery is an ancient burial. 

If burials are discovered on a development site, it’s the developer’s responsibility to inform the police. The cost of handling ancient burials on development sites usually falls upon the developer, supervised by the planning authority. 

When ancient burials are found outside a development site, the local authority’s archaeologist will contact us. If we consider the remains important, we’ll manage the situation through our human remains call-off contract.  You can find out more by downloading our policy paper  below.