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Armed with their astonishing frying pans, headphones on, the detectorists hunt for treasures buried in the ground. Nice collectors or looters of antiques, who are they really? “Special Envoy” went to meet these enthusiasts who arouse controversy.
They roam the fields and the beaches with their amazing frying pans, headphones on. Detectorists hunt for treasures buried in the ground. They would be 100,000 in France. But in recent years, war has been declared: on the one hand, the defenders of heritage who accuse them of being looters and denounce trafficking in antiques; on the other hand, the detectorists who claim, on the contrary, to save objects from oblivion.
Leisure or crime?
These prospectors are now in the crosshairs of justice and more and more, among them, are the subject of legal proceedings. Why are they now considered outlaws? Nice collectors or looters of antiques, who are they really? “Special Envoy” went to meet these enthusiasts who arouse controversy.
A report by Kristian Autain, Guillaume Marque, Benjamin Poulain and Bruno Maruani broadcast in “Special Envoy” on October 28, 2021.
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