diff --git a/tests/test_detect_redactions.py b/tests/test_detect_redactions.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d4f6101
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_detect_redactions.py
@@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
+import numpy as np
+from PIL import Image
+
+from unredact.pipeline.detect_redactions import detect_redactions, Redaction
+
+
+def test_detect_single_black_rectangle():
+    """A white image with one black rectangle should yield one redaction."""
+    img = Image.new("RGB", (800, 600), "white")
+    pixels = np.array(img)
+    # Draw a black rectangle (simulating a redaction)
+    pixels[200:230, 100:300] = [0, 0, 0]
+    img = Image.fromarray(pixels)
+
+    redactions = detect_redactions(img)
+    assert len(redactions) == 1
+    r = redactions[0]
+    assert abs(r.x - 100) < 5
+    assert abs(r.y - 200) < 5
+    assert abs(r.w - 200) < 10
+    assert abs(r.h - 30) < 10
+
+
+def test_detect_no_redactions_on_clean_page():
+    """A white page with no black rectangles should return empty list."""
+    img = Image.new("RGB", (800, 600), "white")
+    redactions = detect_redactions(img)
+    assert redactions == []
+
+
+def test_detect_ignores_small_noise():
+    """Small black spots (< min area) should be ignored."""
+    img = Image.new("RGB", (800, 600), "white")
+    pixels = np.array(img)
+    pixels[100:105, 100:105] = [0, 0, 0]  # 5x5 spot — too small
+    img = Image.fromarray(pixels)
+
+    redactions = detect_redactions(img)
+    assert redactions == []
+
+
+def test_detect_multiple_redactions():
+    """Multiple black rectangles should all be detected."""
+    img = Image.new("RGB", (800, 600), "white")
+    pixels = np.array(img)
+    pixels[100:125, 50:250] = [0, 0, 0]
+    pixels[300:325, 100:400] = [0, 0, 0]
+    pixels[450:475, 200:500] = [0, 0, 0]
+    img = Image.fromarray(pixels)
+
+    redactions = detect_redactions(img)
+    assert len(redactions) == 3
diff --git a/unredact/pipeline/detect_redactions.py b/unredact/pipeline/detect_redactions.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..fddebd8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/unredact/pipeline/detect_redactions.py
@@ -0,0 +1,74 @@
+from dataclasses import dataclass
+import uuid
+
+import cv2
+import numpy as np
+from PIL import Image
+
+
+@dataclass
+class Redaction:
+    """A detected redaction bounding box."""
+    id: str
+    x: int
+    y: int
+    w: int
+    h: int
+
+
+# Minimum area in pixels to consider (filters noise)
+MIN_AREA = 500
+
+# Minimum aspect ratio (width/height) — redactions are wider than tall
+MIN_ASPECT = 1.5
+
+
+def detect_redactions(image: Image.Image) -> list[Redaction]:
+    """Detect black-filled rectangles in a page image.
+
+    Converts to grayscale, thresholds for near-black pixels, finds contours,
+    and filters for rectangular shapes that look like redaction bars.
+
+    Args:
+        image: PIL Image of a document page.
+
+    Returns:
+        List of Redaction objects sorted top-to-bottom, left-to-right.
+    """
+    arr = np.array(image.convert("RGB"))
+    gray = cv2.cvtColor(arr, cv2.COLOR_RGB2GRAY)
+
+    # Threshold: pixels darker than 40 are "black"
+    _, binary = cv2.threshold(gray, 40, 255, cv2.THRESH_BINARY_INV)
+
+    # Morphological close to merge adjacent redaction fragments
+    kernel = cv2.getStructuringElement(cv2.MORPH_RECT, (15, 3))
+    binary = cv2.morphologyEx(binary, cv2.MORPH_CLOSE, kernel)
+
+    contours, _ = cv2.findContours(binary, cv2.RETR_EXTERNAL, cv2.CHAIN_APPROX_SIMPLE)
+
+    redactions: list[Redaction] = []
+    for contour in contours:
+        x, y, w, h = cv2.boundingRect(contour)
+        area = w * h
+
+        if area < MIN_AREA:
+            continue
+
+        # Aspect ratio filter: redactions are wider than tall
+        if h > 0 and w / h < MIN_ASPECT:
+            continue
+
+        # Fill ratio: the contour should fill most of the bounding rect
+        contour_area = cv2.contourArea(contour)
+        if contour_area / area < 0.7:
+            continue
+
+        redactions.append(Redaction(
+            id=uuid.uuid4().hex[:8],
+            x=x, y=y, w=w, h=h,
+        ))
+
+    # Sort top-to-bottom, then left-to-right
+    redactions.sort(key=lambda r: (r.y, r.x))
+    return redactions