4 ms·

Is there a reason why they're so vague about which country it was found in? It's repeatedly described in the article as "a West-European country", and that it

Is there a reason why they're so vague about which country it was found in? It's repeatedly described in the article as "a West-European country", and that it was "close to the border of The Netherlands." That seems to suggest either Belgium or Germany. Is it just to make the location harder for others to find, or because borders are in dispute or have shifted since it was buried? (Probably unrelated, but I see on Google Maps a forest & bog 20km from the Netherlands border, where the German border appears to be split in two by a Belgian railway line running through it.)

lower 8y ago
I don't think there are any border disputes in this area. Perhaps the hobby-archaeologist wanted to remain anonymous because unearthing historical artifacts with a metal detector is illegal in some places. In Germany one needs a permit at least and must leave finds undisturbed so that archaeologists can see the context of the find. If the hobby-archaeologist is searching illegally, then he/she may be afraid that the location of the find may lead to him/her.
staffanj 8y ago
That railway and strange border is an old remnant of the Treaty of Versailles.
- SyneRyder 8y ago
  Oh wow! I knew I'd get an interesting reply. That helped me find some more info on the Travel StackExchange [1] & Fascinating Maps [2], if others are interested. I'm especially fascinated by Rückschlag, a single house & garden that is German territory within Belgium: [1] https://travel.stackexchange.com/questions/105503/is-this-weird-area-on-the-belgium-germany-border-a-walkway-or-something-differen https://travel.stackexchange.com/questions/105503/is-this-we... [2] https://fascinatingmaps.com/strange-german-exclaves-in-belgium-vennbahn/ https://fascinatingmaps.com/strange-german-exclaves-in-belgi...
  - deleted 8y ago
    [deleted]
  - bchallenor 8y ago
    There's a fascinating YouTube series called "The Most Complex International Borders in the World" about enclaves and exclaves. [1] There are even some "counter-enclaves", e.g. a part of the Netherlands inside Belgium inside the Netherlands. [2] [1] https://youtube.com/watch?v=gtLxZiiuaXs https://youtube.com/watch?v=gtLxZiiuaXs [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baarle-Nassau https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baarle-Nassau

lower 8y ago

I don't think there are any border disputes in this area. Perhaps the hobby-archaeologist wanted to remain anonymous because unearthing historical artifacts with a metal detector is illegal in some places. In Germany one needs a permit at least and must leave finds undisturbed so that archaeologists can see the context of the find. If the hobby-archaeologist is searching illegally, then he/she may be afraid that the location of the find may lead to him/her.

staffanj 8y ago

That railway and strange border is an old remnant of the Treaty of Versailles.

SyneRyder 8y ago
Oh wow! I knew I'd get an interesting reply. That helped me find some more info on the Travel StackExchange [1] & Fascinating Maps [2], if others are interested. I'm especially fascinated by Rückschlag, a single house & garden that is German territory within Belgium: [1] https://travel.stackexchange.com/questions/105503/is-this-weird-area-on-the-belgium-germany-border-a-walkway-or-something-differen https://travel.stackexchange.com/questions/105503/is-this-we... [2] https://fascinatingmaps.com/strange-german-exclaves-in-belgium-vennbahn/ https://fascinatingmaps.com/strange-german-exclaves-in-belgi...
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
- bchallenor 8y ago
  There's a fascinating YouTube series called "The Most Complex International Borders in the World" about enclaves and exclaves. [1] There are even some "counter-enclaves", e.g. a part of the Netherlands inside Belgium inside the Netherlands. [2] [1] https://youtube.com/watch?v=gtLxZiiuaXs https://youtube.com/watch?v=gtLxZiiuaXs [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baarle-Nassau https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baarle-Nassau