Friday, July 22, 2016

7/22/16 Report - Two Dug Ancient-Looking Coins For Identification. Silver Cache Found in Spain. Cannon Found in Waterway.


Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com.

Two Almost Identical Dug Beach Coins.



These two nearly identical coins were recently dug.  They are the same size as a quarter, but not as consistently thick.  I do not see any signs of them being circulated and almost no corrosion other than the dark patina.  I believe they are probably fake.  I don't have any good test acid right now, so I haven't tested them, but from the weight and other characteristics, I think they are not genuine coins but probably made to be used in costume jewelry.  They are more perfectly round than I would expect of a genuine coin, and the edges are sharp.

Even if they aren't genuine, I'd like to determine what they are supposed to look like, if there are genuine coins that look like that.

I provide photos of the lettering below.  If anyone can read the words or tell me what they are supposed to be I'd appreciate it.

Thanks much.












---

200 Silver Denarii Found Buried in a Vase.

Barcelona (CNA).- "The 2,500-year-old Empúries site on the Costa Brava continues to provide surprises. The last three weeks of excavations, carried out by thirty students attending the 70thedition of Archaeology Course of Empúries, lead to the largest treasure ever found on the site; a ceramic-vase containing 200 silver denarius dating from the 1st century B.C. Thanks to the good conditions of the treasure, the archaeologists have concluded that the treasure would have been hidden by its owner in one of the rooms of the houses which are also being excavated. The treasure would have been lost after a fire which hit the property. Besides this treasure, 24 amphorae of wine have been discovered in the cellar ​​the house, a slab of bronze -'simpulum'- to extract wine and two bracelets.

Here is the link for the rest of that story."

http://www.catalannewsagency.com/culture/item/200-silver-denarius-discovered-in-empuries-largest-treasure-found-so-far-in-the-roman-site

When I post a news item like this, there is usually something I think you can get from it.  In this case, one thing to notice is how the cache was lost.  A fire to the dwelling caused its loss.

Although the vast majority of my detecting has been on the beach, there are times that I get out and hunt land sites.  In one case I was able to hunt the site of an old hotel that burned down in the 1940s. Sites like that can be good sites with lots of targets, but there will probably be a lot of junk. The junk may actually be a good thing if you are not one of the first to detect the site.  A lot of detectorists will leave a lot of good targets when there is a good covering of junk.

---


Mid 1800s Cannon Recovered From Waterway In Hong Kong.
Source: South China Morning Post.
“This trip is tangible evidence that there is historical material in Hong Kong’s waters. There have been lots of surveys on land but not in water,” Jeffery added, urging the government to invest more in maritime archaeology as it is important to the understanding of Hong Kong’s history."

Here is the link.

http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education-community/article/1991821/hong-kongs-sunken-treasure-ancient-anchor-and

Some places are more covered by detectorists and salvagers than others.

---

We'll have something like a two-foot surf today.  Just a touch less this weekend.

We'll also have some negative tides.

There is no significant tropical activity yet.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net