Metal Detecting in China

[Tommi]

Hey guys,

Just wondering if anyone has or knows anything about if its legal for a foreigner to metal detect in china?

Cheers
Tom.

 

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[hikeinmts]

Tommy, Just read your question. I am located in S. Korea. But, have bought a few coins from a man in Macau, part of China, I think.
I told him about where I got most of my older Korean coins.......by metal detecting. He commented to me that it would just not be possible
to do that in any part of China. I don't know if it is against the law to own a metal detector. Or, if there are other restrictions.
I do know that coins are being found on a weekly basis.....as I buy Chinese coins from a coin dealer in N.Y State who gets them from a contact
in China. How does the Chinese guy get them? That I don't know.
I would hesitate to take a metal detector into China on a first trip, for sure. Then, when on the first trip, talk to someone who I knew WAS
UNDERSTANDING WHAT I WAS SAYING.....and see what he could tell me. ( I would hate to take a detector into China only to have it confiscated
by immigration.......and not returned.
Let me know what you find out, if you go into China. I am definately interested.

 

[Tommi]

thanks for the reply hikeinmts, I'm also interested to find out! but as you say I don't want to loose my detector.
when I find out, I will let you know.
Take it easy!
Tom.

 

[slhinkle]

Have you since 2008 heard anything about metal detecting in china? Steve

 

[slhinkle]

Have you answered the question about treasure hunting in China since 2007?

 

[jeffrey1215]

As I know, you are not allowed to metal detecting in China, lol, you will not get permission to metal detect in China except you work some mining Company. If you find anything like Ancient Coin or valuable stuff and gold, you have to return to local government office. Unless you want to be fined or jailed. The coins sold at the market either by the illegal or legal way, by illegal I mean, rob an old tomb and sell those old coins at the black market. by the legal way, I mean some people get the old coins from their grandmother or grandfather, and sell them to collectors. Once you find any high-value stuff, and return to local government, they will give you a silk banner as praise. lol

 

[tocollect]

You can not use detector. you can collect from market

 

[Tom_in_CA]

You can not use detector. you can collect from market

Where are you getting this info from ? Do you have any citations/links of actual laws that specifically say: "No metal detecting in China" ? I know a guy (A chinese linguist from the USA) who detected there w/o any problem in the world. And he's corresponded with hunters from there.

This could be one of those type things where somone (bless their little hearts) asked a bored Chinese purist archie ages ago, got a "no", and then just fed it into the "link" mill, from then on out ? And then years later, everyone is just taking it as gospel fact ? When perhaps whatever "no" someone got, was couched in terms of historical sensitive monuments, shipwreck salvor, exporting gold bars across the border, or some such nonsense ? (but for casual fumble fingers beach stuff, was never meant to apply , nor does anyone care ?).

I may be wrong, and perhaps there's truly a law. If so, can you link it ? Not that it would stop my friend next time he goes there, but it will give him a chuckle.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

I just checked with my friend here, whom I alluded to had hunted in China. Turns out it was Taiwan. But he drew my attention to the fact that there's no shortage of videos (youtube? etc... ) and posts of people hunting in China. Granted, perhaps it just beach stuff (and perhaps not angling for old coins). Humorously he says it'll typically be some beginner type dude, with no headphone, and chain-smoking as he detects, haha And from what he gathers, they're not "hiding anything". Ie.: they're out on the open beach, etc...

CERTAINLY these guys can't all be going about it illegally ??

So if someone has something to the contrary, that all md'ing (even for new stuff) is dis-allowed in China, please post the link to ACTUAL law. Not just someone who got this silly answer from a bored archie 25 yrs. ago, blah blah.

 

[howzzzat]

Just stumbled on this thread - I'm a brit living in China and regularly metal detect. Never been stopped, never been questioned - and never felt I was going to get into trouble. China has millions of laws for just about everything - but only about 2% of them seem to be enforced!!! I suppose bringing a metal detector into the country could cause some questioning, but I bought my detector here in China (Garrett 4000i). I don't detect on the side of the road or in places where there's too many people, but I live in the west of the country and am very close to mountains and the countryside. I find lots of Ching Dynasty coins and some interesting relics - like cartridges from the late 30's that must have been used in the civil war and today an early communist badge that was marked 1951. I'd love to get into contact with any other China based dectorists - don't think there are many of us.

Pic is of my 5 year old son - he has a kid's bounty hunter and managed to find this 1930's coin

 

[Charles889]

Dear howzzzat, I am also in China and try to find a Garrett but without luck. Can you tell me where you bought your equipment? Thank you very much and best regards.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

howzzzat, thanx for chiming in. This thread is sort of a microcosm of the psychology at work: If anyone posts "it's not allowed", and .... if no one else questions or corrects it, then the assertion is now picked up on key-word searches. Which then get linked and taken as authoritative. Heck, it might even seem legit (eg.: the original claimant asked someone, or caught flack by a busy-body, etc...). The skittish caution level takes hold , and the links turn to links turn to links. Pretty soon, you can never put the matter to rest. Unless, of course, someone eventually tries to "find out for sure". So what do they do ? THEY GO ASK A BORED BUREAUCRAT. And ... the "pressing question" ends up on the desk of a purist archie. Who couches the question in terms of some sort of antiquities laws, or issues a policy statement (to address "your pressing issue"). And ....... You see how all this merely becomes a giant self-fulfilling loop ?

Meanwhile the oldtimers who never had a problem in the world (nor did anyone really ever care) are left scratching their heads saying "since when?".

Sure, don't throw caution to the wind. Sure avoid obvious historic sensitive monuments. But beyond that, I think md'rs can sometimes be their own worst enemy. Thanx for posting your info. to shed the light of reality on the subject/question.

 

[howzzzat]

Hi Charles - plenty of metal detectors on Taobao.com -here's a selection when you search after Garrett - you have to scroll halfway through page to find them
https://world.taobao.com/search/search.htm?_ksTS=1491835124736_21&spm=a21bp.7806943.20151106.1&_input_charset=utf-8&navigator=all&json=on&q=garrett&callback=__jsonp_cb&cna=i8N3EB0csFACAbaLWCGy%2Fmys&abtest=_AB-LR517-LR854-LR895-PR517-PR854-PR895
Where are you based in China

Here's a You Tube vid my 5yo (apologies for the shaking, odd finger over lens and the very frenetic commentary) made of me and our neighbours girl off detecting last week - the coins are all Ching and that cartridge we find at end of film is almost certainly captured Japanese (no head stamp, looks like a 6.5 - and we're living in an area that was never occupied).

 

[Charles889]

Hi howzzzat, First thank you for your answer. I have seen on Taobao the detectors but worry that I would get a fake one. I have contact Garrett in the states and they are helpful but their representatives in China and Hong Kong are useless and do hardly answer if they do so then only state the price or simply remain quiet. This even when in Chinese.
Well, I am now stationed in Xiamen but my family is in Beijing, hence I travel often back and forth. And you where are you?
I will check out your Youtube publication, I am curious about it - right after work today.
Again thank you very much and I will let you know once I can start my SEARCH.

 

[SilverReciever]

I was also thinkig about searching in China, as i dream to find any relics over russo-japanese war. But i found that metaldetecting in China is prohibited. Now i see there is a chance to do it. Very well then.
And i can't keep silent - i realy want to ask chinese collegues about any finds tied with russo-japanese war of 1904-1905. Did you get any finds about it?!! It is very intresting for me. Reply please.

 

[ARC]

One time I was digging a hole so deep I thought I was gonna end up in China.

:P

 

[Tom_in_CA]

.... But i found that metaldetecting in China is prohibited...

Can you please link to where you got this information ? Eg.: link to the law or whatever, that says "metal detecting in China = illegal" ?

And now you say:

.... Now i see there is a chance to do it..

By this I assume that since you're seeing on-line (this thread and wherever) that metal detecting is going on there, that you realize there must be some sort of moderating circumstance ? Ie.: *certainly* all those people can't be doing it illegally, eh ?

Not sure what you found previously that you think said it's illegal, but perhaps you were reading something about federal land (yet which would not apply to private land, city land, etc....). Or that applied to obvious historic sensitive monuments, etc.... (yet is never applied to casual fumble fingers beach stuff, or that doesn't apply to whatever a private landowner does on his own land, etc....)

 

[Tom_in_CA]

One time I was digging a hole so deep I thought I was gonna end up in China.

:P

When I first started this hobby, in 8th grade (13-ish yrs. old) I was out with a friend. I was his digger-boy (because we had only 1 metal detector to share). I was digging a hole where we'd gotten a beep. He came back over to me a minute later, and scolded me for digging such a big sloppy hole. He said "What are you doing ? Digging to China ??"

At that EXACT MOMENT (I kid you not), I dug up a Chinese lapel pin with some sort of Chinese writings and designs on it. Doh!

 

[SilverReciever]

Can you please link to where you got this information ? Eg.: link to the law or whatever, that says "metal detecting in China = illegal" ?

It was about couple years ago. I found this info reading one of the forums for russian treasure hunters. Don't remember now which one it was. There was a list of countries and it described possibility to metal detecting among them. I remember Turkey was stricktly forbidden to dig, some of german provincies and china was mentioned as country where you may gain only trouble after digging out any artefatcs. And i remember it said smthng like "be careful, china is still participating the death penalty..." that was enough for me and i didn't search for any chinese laws any more. So, can't give you a link to a law. I guess i need to contact with people who know chinese, perhaps they may help.

And now you say:
By this I assume that since you're seeing on-line (this thread and wherever) that metal detecting is going on there, that you realize there must be some sort of moderating circumstance ? Ie.: *certainly* all those people can't be doing it illegally, eh ?

Uhm... well i saw on the video that people do metal detecting in china so it is possible practicaly))) I guess it is just like in Russia - it's basicly forbidden, but state doesn't persue it hardly, you now. I hope you got my point.

Anyway, need to research this question to be sure. I believe our chinese friends will give us more wide info.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

It was about couple years ago. I found this info reading one of the forums .....

Thanx for the info. And even if you could remember the forum where you read that, and even if you did have a link, here's what would probably happen: The "source" there would merely be someone saying "it's illegal" . Death penalty, etc.... And if you were to find the person who typed that, and had asked him: "What is your source?", he too would probably answer: "I read it on a forum somewhere".

And so on, and so forth back to permanent regression. The "links lead to links lead to links lead to...." . And in each case, it's someone simply making the statement. Pretty soon, it's impossible to put to rest. All the links just point to each other.

And if someone COULD eventually trace it back to an actual law of any sort, it will probably be something catch-all. Like cultural heritage. Ie.: laws that deal with protected monuments, or shipwreck salvor, or exporting gold bars out of the country, etc....

To make an analogy: It would be similar to if someone 50 yrs. ago (back when detecting was in infancy here in the USA) came to the USA and started asking purist archies or lawyers: "Can I detect in the USA?" They might get an earful about ARPA. Or lost & found laws. Or tax laws, or .... some such "answer to your pressing question" type thing. And that person goes back home, and issues dire warnings: "Don't bother detecting in the USA, as it's highly illegal". That gets picked up on links. Which lead to links. Which leads to links. And before long, all the old-timers are looking around scratching their heads saying "since when ?"

I have a few case-examples of this evolution on a national scale. And thus whenever I read something dire about a country supposedly off-limits, border-to-border, I sometimes wonder "says who?" & "where is this written" ?