My last dig????

[yeti]

Hi folks.
So yesterday I was out digging in the Berlin forests and, as I headed back to my car with detector and spade in hand, I was approached by a local guy. He said that it was illegal to dig in Berlin Brandenburg and there were large fines. If you are caught digging into the earth then it’s €5000 but if you have a spade and detector it will be a €20,000 fine! To say it freaked me out is an understatement.
Does anyone know if what he said is true? I certainly can’t afford to pay fines like that so I’m now having to rethink my hobby which I love to bits. Feeling very sad and gloomy today.

[Adrian Stevenson]

He is correct. You should not be digging there.

[Adravor]

Brandenburg is an absolute no-go Zone. There are many illegal diggers there, who also robb war graves which still exist a lot in the heavy fought about areas. If you want to dig in germany, go to Bavaria. Its the only state of germany where digging is completly legal withouth a state permission.

[RustyRelics]

Well cripes! That *****.

[yeti]

The thing that amazes me is the sheer number of people digging in the area, the amount of dig sites I see compared to a year ago is quite incredible (I guess it’s lockdown giving people more spare time). I’m not a native speaker or permanently based here but vast majority of diggers will be German so definitely likely to be aware of the rules and yet the massive fines don’t put them off!! Especially as it seems most of the good stuff has been already dug up.

[Paul D]

Did you read either of these threads when you joined ?

Please read before attempting to post in this section !!!

Laws and Battlefield Archaeology !!

[yeti]

I did read that and also a thread about metal detecting in Germany. I certainly didn’t believe I was doing anything illegal and assumed “ black diggers” were the sort who dig up soldiers remains and plunder them, go into clearly marked military sites,etc. I have seen signs in some forests stating that, due to military use, access was forbidden so I certainly had no intention of disrespecting clear laws. The stuff I read (had read to me actually) here in Germany was that it was illegal to dig for antiquities without a permit or on archeological sites. I know that area such as Halbe and Seelow are considered war graves and to be respected. I simply did not realise that it was an illegal practice, especially because so many YouTube channels dig here and the masses of dig sites I see when out in the woods. Hard lesson learned for me.

[Adrian Stevenson]

The main thing is you are now fully aware of the situation and have not got into trouble.

Cheers, Ade.

[yeti]

Yes, very true indeed. Thank you Adrian. This forum is absolutely amazing. I may have to stop digging now but I have learnt so much from the people on here.

[Adravor]

As said, go to Bavaria, it is completly legal there. But yeah, there are a lot of illegal diggers in germany. Police is barely present in the countryside and germany has a lot of battelfields and woods, so controlling it is almost impossible.