Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com.
Here is the catalog description from the online auction.
Lima, Peru, cob 8 escudos, 1703/2H, from the 1715 Fleet, very rare (unique overdate), encapsulated NGC MS 62. S-L25a; KM-38.1 ;CT-13. 26.9 grams. This is an exciting coin: For starters it is lustrous Mint State and well struck, well centered (also aligned axes) and with virtually full legends, which enables the advanced researcher to study the dies carefully. The cross side is an exact match with Tauler #219, but the pillars-side die is previously unknown, either for 1702 or 1703 (of which only 2-3 of each are known, none in the State of Florida collection), with a straight-bottom crown that ended in 1703. The overdate is hard to see (NGC missed it, after all), due to minor doubling (localized to that spot only), but an overlay comparison with the "2" on the 1702 in our Auction #6 (lot 21) proves it. A unique coin like this has unlimited potential, but for comparison we would like to point out that the only other 1703 we have sold (Auction #3 lot 8, which was the highlight of the 2003 Tampa sale, where it sold for $13,250) realized $17,250 in 2008. Also note the previously cited 1702 sold for $25,300 in 2009! From the 1715 Fleet, with photo-certificate.
Not only a great cob, but an overdate. Examine found coins closely for errors.
I'd advise going through the auction description and looking at the photos to see if you can see what is described. That is a good way to learn.
I'm going to recommend that you do some genealogical research once again. I know I've done that before, but I am so amazed at what I recently found that I can't help recommending it again. I was blown away.
Six generations back into my ancestry I found information about Captain John Wetzel, who came from Holland, was a captain in the Revolutionary War and was killed by the Indians.
I'm not to the part that blew me away yet.
He had a couple of sons, Lewis, the more famous one, and John Jr., who is in my direct ancestral line.
Captain John, the father of John and Lewis, was killed by the Indians while Lewis was still young, and Lewis was shot in the chest and captured by the Indians at the age of 13 and later escaped. He managed to survive the injury even though it fractured his sternum. As a result of the killing of his father and his own injury and capture by the Indians, he vowed vengeance against the Indians and ended up collecting a rather large number of scalps.
My good fortune is that a book was written about him in the 1800s, not long after his life on this earth was concluded. There are also historical references to him in other history books.
The account of frontier life in the 1780s is fascinating reading. It is hard to imagine that it was actually like that. Political correctness does not permit accurate description of the violence. And seldom do you find such good descriptions of daily life on the frontier back then.
Here is the part that blew me away.
Much of the drama of Lewis' life took place at Mingo Bottom. Doesn't sound like any big deal. Well, I've shown photos of a wagon trail and Indian trail that takes off from Mingo Bottom in this blog. I've detected that trail numerous times. It goes through the property where my wife grew up in West Virginia, and I'm as familiar with the trail as the back of my hand. Numerous arrow heads and artifacts have been found along that trial by my wife's family and I've shown a few finds from the trail in this blog, including things like a horse shoe, buckle, bell, etc.
Now that blew me away. I had no idea that my ancestors had walked the same ground back in the 1780s that I've walked many times myself and detected a few times. I would never in a million years have guessed that. A horse shoe or artifact that I picked up may have actually been from one of my ancestors. I now know that is entirely possible. And before very recently when I discovered the wealth of reference material about Lewis and his family, I had absolutely no idea.
Of all the places in the country, I was absolutely amazed to learn that I've been tromping the same area as my ancesters from the 1780s, and I didn't even know it until a night or two ago.
Many times I've passed a spot on the river that Lewis swam across while making an escape. It is no small river either. The location is precisely described in more than one historical resource. I know it well.
In this blog I've shown some of the Indian artifacts from the same area that one of my wife's family members collected. I didn't know that my ancestors were there battling the Indians hundreds of years ago.
Some coincidences just seem too unlikely. It makes you wonder if it just an amazing coincidence or something else?
Not long ago I used the term personal history. This is certainly personal history for me.
I've wondered why I like the mountains so much? Just the other day I showed a scene of a cabin site in the Rocky Mountains in this blog. Is there something more than coincidence to explain it?
Personal history isn't created or owned by academics, professionals, or museums. It is a part of your life and mine, if you are lucky enough to chase it long enough to find it. In fact I think the professionals do it damage, reducing in some way what they claim to offer.
Sometimes I've wondered why I do this blog. I might be a little closer to knowing now.
This isn't about me and my ancestors. It is about everyone. It is about you and yours too.
You never know where the lines will cross. You never know until you connect the dots.
Once again, I highly recommend doing your own genealogical research. You have an ancestry, and there is something fascinating about discovering how you ended up where you did. You might not find a lot quickly or easily, but take your time. That is the way it goes with treasure.
Here is a link to the resource where I found a lot of information about my ancestors who lived a very adventurous life in the 1700s. If you like history or adventure stories, you might like reading this.
http://archive.org/stream/lifeandadventur00hartgoog#page/n98/mode/2up
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| Old Indian and Wagon Trail in W. Va. |
There are no storms in the tropics to watch.
On the Treasure Coast we are having a 1 - 2 foot surf, which is predicted to decrease through Wednesday. After that it will start to increase a bit, but is predicted to jump up to 4 - 6 feet next Sunday.
If that actually happens it very well might result in a long overdue beach conditions upgrade.
This weekend we still have high low tides.
Happy researching.
Happy hunting, TreaureGuide@comcast.net
