Detect an opportunity for artefact detecting?

This is not a call to incite larceny. But have you noticed how almost all stolen historical artefacts ‘travel’ from East to West? But, surely, in this waiting room of ‘The Asian Century’ where we are still sitting, couldn’t the traffic of priceless artefacts — obviously they have price tags — also flow from West to East now?

But, till then, there’s been another haul of oriental artefact found in occidental hands, which includes Phoenician (modern West Asian) gold jewellery possibly dating back to 1200 BC, found in Spain.

Yes, okay, the bulk of the trove found by the Spanish police in the possession of a metal detectorist in Cádiz were ancient Roman. But that’s Italy’s headache.


Will we ever see priceless objects being smuggled out from, say, Salisbury Cathedral in Britain; or a prize cache from a medieval French catacomb transported to a Borivali collector?

Frankly, politely asking back for historical things nicked from our backyard, like the Kohinoor diamond or some sixth-century Chola Nataraja bronze, could well be ineffective.

Perhaps, inspired by reading this editorial about our Spanish metal detectorist, some enterprising sorts from here could make a go at going all ‘British Museum’ on western artefacts. Sure, it will have to be without colonialism already having done the heavy lifting. It’s a thought, albeit criminal.