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Chapter 5
Payment of rewards
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Payment of rewards in respect of finds of relevant archaeological objects
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112. (1) (a) Subject to paragraphs (b) and (c) and subsections (2) to (6), the Board may, at its discretion, pay a reward, to the finder of a relevant archaeological object, found on or after the commencement of this section, or to the owner or occupier of the land in, on or under which the object was found, or both such finder and owner or occupier, as the Board thinks fit, if the object is retained on behalf of the State and the Board is satisfied that it is in the public interest to pay such reward.
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(b) Subject to paragraph (c), the Board shall not pay a reward under paragraph (a) exceeding the relevant amount in respect of the finding of a relevant archaeological object except with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform.
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(c) For the purposes of paragraph (b), the relevant amount is—
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(i) subject to subparagraph (ii), €25,000, or
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(ii) such greater amount than €25,000 as may be prescribed by the Minister after consultation with the Board and with the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform.
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(2) The Board shall take account of one or more than one of the following criteria in deciding whether or not to pay a reward under subsection (1)(a) in respect of the finding of a relevant archaeological object:
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(a) the intrinsic value and the general archaeological and historic importance of the object;
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(b) the circumstances of the finding of the object, including, in particular, compliance or otherwise with the provisions of this Act;
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(c) the amount of the rewards paid in the State in respect of the finding of other similar relevant archaeological objects.
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(3) Subsection (2) shall not be construed as requiring the payment of a reward on the basis of the market value of the relevant archaeological object concerned but the Board may, at its discretion, take account of such market value if, in the Board’s opinion, the circumstances of a particular case so warrants.
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(4) The Board shall not pay a reward under subsection (1)(a) in respect of the finding of a relevant archaeological object—
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(a) made in the course of any activity required to be carried out under a new authorisation or old authorisation (and whether or not such authorisation was in fact granted, issued or given), or
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(b) made in the course of any activity exempted under this Act or the National Monuments Acts from a requirement to be carried out under a new authorisation or old authorisation.
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(5) The Board shall not pay a reward under subsection (1)(a), in respect of the finding of a relevant archaeological object, to an officer, agent, or servant of, or any other person acting on behalf of—
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(a) the Minister,
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(b) the Commissioners,
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(c) the Board, or
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(d) a local authority,
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where such officer, agent, servant or other person found the object during the course of performing his or her functions under this Act or during the course of performing his or her functions arising from any office or employment, or contract for, or of, services, which is connected to this Act.
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(6) The payment of a reward under subsection (1)(a) in respect of the finding of relevant archaeological object shall not be construed to confer any rights in respect of the object on the person to whom the reward was paid.
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