A predominantly urban county with limited detecting. The Magnesian Limestone ridge in the east and the Aire and Wharfe valleys provide the best opportunities.
FROM THE PORTABLE ANTIQUITIES SCHEME
Selected archaeological finds from the PAS records for West Yorkshire.
MESOLITHICAn incomplete debitage blade of probable Mesolithic date 10,000 BC - 4000 BC. The distal end is snapped. It is a tertiary blade of…
Explore this findPhoto: ikw1945 / West Yorkshire Archaeology Advisory Service · CC-BY
Licence label and image metadata on the linked PAS record.
MESOLITHICAn incomplete flint thumbnail scraper dating from the Mesolithic or the Early Bronze Age (10,000 - 4000 BC or 2400 - 2200 BC).
Explore this findPhoto: ikw1945 / West Yorkshire Archaeology Advisory Service · CC-BY
Licence label and image metadata on the linked PAS record.
Coal Measures and Millstone Grit (acidic) dominate. Magnesian Limestone in the east gives better preservation. River Aire and Wharfe valley alluvium.
Magnesian Limestone ridge farmland, Wharfe valley rural fields, eastern fringe farmland near Wetherby
Roman material near Castleford (Lagentium) and Ilkley (Olicana), medieval material in the Wharfe valley, post-medieval farming community items
Roman Castleford (Lagentium) is a significant fort site. Ilkley Moor area has produced Roman and earlier material from the moor edge farmland.
Focus on the Magnesian Limestone ridge and the Wharfe valley. Roman Castleford’s hinterland is underdetected. The east of the county near the North Yorkshire border has the best potential.
You can detect on private land in West Yorkshire with the landowner’s permission. You must avoid scheduled monuments, SSSIs and other protected sites. Joining a local club is the easiest way to reach permissioned land.
Yes. Metal detecting is legal in West Yorkshire on land where you have the landowner’s permission, as long as you avoid protected sites and follow the law on reporting treasure and recording finds.
West Yorkshire is covered by a Portable Antiquities Scheme Finds Liaison Officer who records finds made by the public. See the FLO section on this page for contact details, or search finds.org.uk.
PAS lists 7,663 database records representing 14,712 recorded objects for West Yorkshire, checked 2 November 2026. These are recorded entries rather than a count of every find made. The period and object-type categories shown in the PAS section are selected, incomplete lists.
Leeds park byelaws require consent, and Wakefield’s castle sites prohibit detecting. Other West Yorkshire councils set separate rules.
PAS data from finds.org.uk. Last checked 2 November 2026.
Submit your club, suggest a correction or share a great spot – help make this guide the best local resource for detectorists in West Yorkshire.
Submit a ListingSuggest an Edit
