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European detecting atlas

Understand the history before you clean—or keep—the find.

Europe is not one detecting rulebook. Start with the country, confirm the exact land and protected status, then record an old find before you remove its clues.

Choose a country guide Identify a Roman coin

First two country guides

Same hobby. Different legal route.

These guides use official national sources, show the review date, and still send you back to the exact land manager.

ENGPermission + protected-site check

England

Public access is not detecting permission.

Get owner and occupier permission. Avoid scheduled monuments without Section 42 consent. Report suspected Treasure within 14 days.

Reporting route
Local Finds Liaison Officer / PAS
Beach note
Ownership and foreshore terms still apply
Read the England law guide
NLD30 cm limit + local APV

The Netherlands

Permission is only the first checkpoint.

Stay on land and within the top 30 cm. Protected monuments, active excavations, underwater sites, and local bans sit outside that route.

Reporting route
RCE or PAN
Local check
Municipal APV and heritage rules
Read the Netherlands law guide

The safe map layer

A map should answer who—not reveal where.

For historical ground, the useful map is a legal route. It never needs to expose a Roman scatter, burial site, or exact findspot.

Historic find routes

Preserve the clues before naming the coin.

Metal, diameter, weight, portrait, letters, reverse design, and find context work together. One clue alone is not an identification.

Roman

Portrait, legend, reverse, mint.

Follow a visual decision tree, move through the imperial timeline, and compare possible matches in OCRE or PAS.

Open Roman Coin Identification

Medieval / hammered

Cross, bust, pellets, mint name.

Use the surviving design—even on a clipped or cut fragment—to build a careful shortlist.

Open the hammered coin guide

Source ledger

Checked against the original source.

Last source review: August 28, 2026. Rules and databases can change, so open the source again before acting.