two things - 1.) Great thing for a gramps and his grandson to share in the memories....thier bonds are tight Im sure....
2.) leave it to government to rob people of joy, for the benefit of the state, creating what Im guessing are two very disappointed and disillusioned people
they should be able to keep it
In England they have some pretty good rules I think to promote treasure hunting. The govt. museum types look at the find and if they think it is museum quality will keep it and reimburse the finder the full value. If they don’t think it is museum quality the finder can keep it. (Or something like that - but they want to promote treasure seeking.) I’m not sure what the rules are pertaining to the landowner rights and the treasure hunter. I would imagine that the hunter would have a contract of sorts and ask permission, with maybe a percentage of any antiquities found to be given to the landowner.