Antiquities

• Coming into Force: 15 July 1940
• Year: 1956
• Act Number: 188

Contenidos

• Short title.
• Property in antiquities.
• Payment by the State of market value of certain antiquities
• Agreement as to appointment of antiquities, without payment by the state.
• Dispute as to market value or apportionment of antiquities,
• No excavation except upon licence from Archaeological Commissioner,
• Application for licence to excavate.
• Grant or refusal of Licence to excavate.
• Terms of licence.
• Duty of licensee in respect of discoveries.
• Withdrawal of licence without compensation.
• Appeal against refusal or withdrawal of licence to excavate.
• immunity of Crown from claims for loss or damage.
• Discovery of antiquities otherwise than under licence to excavate.
• Offences relating to discovery of antiquities.
• Declaration of a monument dating to period prior to 1850 as an ancient monument.
• Declaration of specified trees as ancient monuments.
• Notification of protected monuments.
• Previous notice of intention to declare an ancient monument to be a protected monument.
• Agreements in regard to protected monuments.
• No restoration & c of protected monument except upon permit.
• Refusal or revocation of permit under section 21.
• Power of Archaeological Commissioner to restore, repair, & c, protected monuments.
• Prohibition or restriction of building mining, & c, in vicinity of certain monuments.
• Claim for compensation by owner of land affected by regulations under section 24.
• Establishment of compensation board.
• Decision of the board after inquiry.
• Powers of the board.
• Appeal to District Court from decision of the board and procedure thereon.
• Hearing of appeal by the court and its powers.
• Penalty for destruction, desecration, & c of ancient monuments.
• Further offences.
• Archaeological reserves.[§ 3, 2 of 1955]
• Encroachments, & c., on archaeological reserves.[§ 4, 2 of 1955]
• Ejectment of person convicted under section 34,
• Prohibition of export of antiquities except upon licence.
• Applications for licence to export antiquities.
• Appeal against refusal of licence.
• Acquisition by museum of antiquity sought to be exported.
• Powers of Archaeological Commissioner.
• Duties of Archaeological Commissioner.
• Power of inspection. & c. of antiquities.
• Authorization-of Government Agents and other officers to exercise powers of Archaeological Commissioner.
• Penalty for breach of Ordinance or regulation, where no other penalty provided.
• Determination of disputes under sections 5 and 39.
• Informer's Share of fines imposed under the Ordinance.
• Regulations.
• Interpretation.
• The Lost property Regulation not to apply to antiquities.

Short title.

1. This Ordinance may be cited as the Antiquities Ordinance.

Property in antiquities.

2. (1) No antiquity shall, by reason only of its being discovered in or upon any land in the ownership of any person, be or be deemed to be the property of such person; Provided that such person shall be deemed to be interested in such antiquity in accordance with the provisions of this Ordinance. (2) Every ancient monument which on the date on which this Ordinance comes into operation is not owned by any person or the control of which is not vested in any person as trustee, incumbent or manager, shall be deemed to be the absolute property of the Crown. (3) All undiscovered antiquities (other than ancient monuments), whether lying on or hidden beneath the surface of the ground or in any river or lake , shall be deemed to be the absolute property of the Crown, subject to the provisions of this Ordinance.

Payment by the State of market value of certain antiquities

3. On the discovery of any antiquity (other than an ancient monument), the Archaeological Commissioner, on behalf of the State, shall be entitled to the custody and possession of such antiquity, unless in any case the Archaeological Commissioner does not consider it necessary that such antiquity shall be retained by the State; and, where any such antiquity is retained by the Archaeological Commissioner on behalf of the Crown, there shall be paid by the Crown- (a) one-half of the market value of the antiquity to the finder thereof and one-half of such value to the owner of the land in which the antiquity was found, or (b) where the same person is both the finder of the antiquity and the owner of such land, the whole of the market value of the antiquity to such person, or (c) where the antiquity is found on Crown land by any person (other than the Archaeological Commissioner or any person acting under his authority in the discharge of any duty or function under this Ordinance), one-half of the market value of the antiquity to the finder thereof; Provided that on the retention by the Crown of any antiquity no such payment as aforesaid shall be made to the finder thereof where the finder has failed to report the discovery of that antiquity in accordance with the provisions of section 10 or section 14, as the case may be.

Agreement as to appointment of antiquities, without payment by the state.

4. (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 3, it shall be lawful for the Archaeological Commissioner, with the approval of the Minister, to enter into an agreement in writing with any person who would under the provisions of section 3 be entitled to the market value of any antiquity or any part of such value, whereby such person shall receive from the State, in lieu of such value or part thereof, a share of such antiquity, to be apportioned in such manner as may be provided in the agreement. (2) Every agreement under subsection (1) shall be free from stamp duty and shall have force and effect notwithstanding anything in section 3 : Provided always that where the finder of any antiquity does not report the discovery thereof in accordance with the provisions of section 10 or section 14, as the case may be, he shall not be entitled to receive any share of such antiquity under any such agreement.

Dispute as to market value or apportionment of antiquities,

5. Where there is any dispute between the Archaeological Commissioner and any person as to the market value of any antiquity or as to the apportionment of any antiquity in terms of an agreement under section 4, such dispute shall be determined in the manner provided in section 45, and such determination shall be final and conclusive.

No excavation except upon licence from Archaeological Commissioner,

6. Subject as hereinafter provided, no person shall excavate for the purpose of discovering antiquities, whether on land belonging to himself or otherwise, except under the authority of a licence issued by the Archaeological Commissioner: Provided that nothing in this section shall apply to any excavation carried out by or on behalf of the Archaeological Commissioner.

Application for licence to excavate.

7. Every application for a licence to excavate shall-- (a) be made to the Archaeological Commissioner in the prescribed form, and (b) contain a full and accurate description of the land on which it is proposed to carry out the excavation, the nature and extent of the proposed excavation, and such other particulars as may be prescribed.

Grant or refusal of Licence to excavate.

8. The Archaeological Commissioner may in his discretion gram or refuse any application for a licence to excavate :Provided that no such licence shall be granted unless the Archaeological Commissioner is satisfied, after such inquiry as he may deem it necessary to make- (a) that the owner of the land where the proposed excavation is to be made has consented to the excavation, and (b) that the proposed excavation will not cause any damage or inconvenience to persons residing in the vicinity of such land, or to any place used for religious purposes, or to any cemetery, school, water source, irrigation work or public road, or that if any such damage is likely to be caused adequate provision has been made by the applicant for the payment of compensation therefor, and (c) that the applicant is able to furnish security for the due observance by him of the provisions of this Ordinance or any regulation, and of any conditions subject to which the licence may be issued.

Terms of licence.

9. Every licence to excavate shall be issued in the prescribed form, subject to the payment of the prescribed fee and shall remain in force, subject to the provisions of section 11, during the period specified in the licence.Any such licence may contain, in addition to the prescribed conditions, such stipulations as the Archaeological Commissioner may deem necessary regarding- (a) the supervision of the proposed excavation by any person approved by the Archaeological Commissioner for the purpose; (b) the payment of remuneration to any such person not being a public servant, or the payment of the prescribed fee in respect of any service rendered by such person being a public servant; and (c) the security to be furnished by the licensee for the due observance of the provisions of this Ordinance and of the terms and conditions subject to which the licence is issued.

Duty of licensee in respect of discoveries.

10. Every person to whom a licence to excavate is granted shall keep a record in the prescribed form of all antiquities discovered in the course of the excavation and shall, within the prescribed period from the date on which any antiquity is discovered, report the discovery thereof to the Archaeological Commissioner and furnish to him the prescribed particulars in respect of the antiquity.

Withdrawal of licence without compensation.

11. Any licence to excavate may, at any time before the expiry of the period specified in the licence, be withdrawn by the Archaeological...