11/12/18 Report - Broken Old Medallion. Repaired Wooden Artifact. Robert Marx Lecture: Archaeology of the Abyss.

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

Old Broken Praying Hands Medallion.

Find and photo by John C.

Take a close look and you'll see the praying hands on this broken medallion.  Below is what John C. had to say about it.

Well sorry I know I'm a little off topic again, because as you can see from the picture it's not a drilled coin, but a religious medallion that at some point was purposely drilled.

It has to be over 20 years since I found this medallion, but I still remember it clearly, I think mainly because of how disappointed I was that it came out in three pieces. I'm sure there are other Beach Hunters out there that can remember a time when you attempt to dig a target only to find out that your shovel or scoop will only go down two or three inches at a time because of the thick layer of shell that's just below the sand. I hate that when that happens. Fortunately those conditions don't happen too often, so as you can see The Medallion broke at its weakest point where it was drilled,, makes you wonder why someone would drill a hole and ruin a beautiful medallion, but I sure would love to know the history and the story behind this medallion, but it looks like the original bezel ring at the top may have broke off long before it was drilled, so maybe it was lost and found several times,?

But I think what really inspired me to share this photo the most, was not so much the drill hole, but the image itself on The Medallion, "praying hands."

It says in Scripture that we should "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and give thanks in all circumstances"

So I think some will agree, that if there has ever been a time in the past say 50 years when our great country and all the movers and shakers of this country need prayers, it's now, but it's always encouraging to remember that God has a plan and a purpose for everything, and no matter how dark things may seem he's still in control.

Thanks again, for all your hard work an effort, that you put into your blog. JC 

Thanks for sharing John.   Fascinating medal.

The hole in the body of the medallion could have been created after the original loop broke.  People were not so quick to throw broken things away in days gone by.  They would often repair or repurpose broken items.  When trying to identify and date an artifact, you have to take into account that the item may have been used over a period of many years and could have been repaired or repurposed.

Hard to tell how old that medallion is but it certainly looks old.  I'd like to see some research and history on the motif of the praying hands.  Maybe someone will be able to provide that.

Back to the subject of repaired items.

Archaeologists found a 2000-year-old wood bowl that had been repaired with rivets and staples.

2000-Year-Old Repaired Wood Bowl.

Source: See BBC.com link below.

Here is the link to the article.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-46124211

And here is a wood bowl that is probably a hundred or more years old, but certainly not thousands of years old.  It is 17.5 inches in diameter.

Antique Wood Bowl.

It is badly cracked and was repaired a long time ago.  I added some wood glue to it, but before that it was repaired with wire.

Two Sets of Holes and Wire Used to Repair Cracked Wood Bowl.

Below is the other side.

Wire Used to Repair Crack Exposed.

On this one the wood chipped off exposing the wired used to repair the crack.

It can be difficult to determine the age of old items like this because they can be repaired and used for a very long time, and then repurposed and used for something else yet again.

A piece of an old copper kettle, for example, can be cut and turned into any number of things.

There isn't a huge difference between this wood bowl and the 2000-year-old bowl discussed in the article.

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SIR ROBERT MARX LECTURE SERIES

ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE ABYSS

Shipwreck Treasures from the Deep

By Sir Robert Marx

At the bottom of bodies of wa

SIR ROBERT MARX LECTURE SERIES

ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE ABYSS

Shipwreck Treasures from the Deep

By Sir Robert Marx

At the bottom of bodies of wa

SIR ROBERT MARX LECTURE SERIES

ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE ABYSS

Shipwreck Treasures from the Deep

By Sir Robert Marx

In this lecture Sir Robert, a pioneer in deep water archaeology, talks about early robotic

equipment and recoveries he made on deep-water shipwreck sites and submerged

settlements. He will take us around the world, from Singapore to the Azores, to

FOR MORE

fascinating sites that he and others have explored.

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The surf on the Treasure Coast is supposed to be about four to six feet today, slacking off gradually through the rest of the week.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

2/18/18 Report - Faculty Member Says, "Treasure hunters are no better than ISIS, except they do not film themselves."

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

I must come to the defense of higher education and archaeology today because of the comments made by one person.  I'm never in favor of judging a group by one person.  

"Treasure hunters are no better than ISIS, except they do not film themselves."  That is a quote from an email written by the person that seems to run a TAMU web page to fight treasure hunting.  I  gave the link in my previous post.  Joe D. forwarded the email containing the quote to me.

The quote equating treasure hunters (however defined) with ISIS fails to appreciate that treasure hunters don't kill, maim, enslave and rape thousands upon thousands, as does ISIS.  What shocked me the most about the comment is the gross insensitivity to human carnage and suffering inflicted by ISIS on thousands and thousands of victims.  When I originally read the web site I thought the author might be using the term treasure hunting as a synonym for looter or something specific, but after reading the email, I wouldn't be surprised if he is actually lumping every one that goes out to the beach for a little recreational metal detecting in with looters - and ISIS.  I hope not.

I do not believe that this person's attitudes reflect the vast majority of those in archaeology, otherwise we would not have people such as Eugene Lyons, E. Lee Spence, or Robert Marx who contribute significantly and are accepted and honored by both academia and treasure hunting.  And we would not have a long history of permits issued by states to treasure salvage companies.  The Florida Collection obtains items every year from Treasure Coast treasure salvors.

I have cited studies in which amateur detectorists worked with archaeologists to survey sites.  The Portable Antiquities Scheme, which began in 1996, has resulted in thousands of finds being made by amateur detectorists that have become a part of the PAS database.  Dr. E. Lee Spence, who credits Robert Marx with being the father of underwater archaeology, worked under permit with Intersal Inc. to locate Queen Anne's Revenge, which I've posted about quite a few times.  Those are just a few of many examples.

The people that read this blog are very much interested in archaeology and would support archaeology any way they can.  They include doctors, attorneys, teachers, etc.  Some have made contributions to the field of archaeology. Most do a little detecting on the beach and have not found anything that would be of interest to an archaeologists but are still enthusiastic about archaeology and are much more interested in our common past than the average citizen.  They are a part of the public for whom the past should be preserved and also the supporters of archaeology.  It is sad to see them lumped in with ISIS.  Mud slinging doesn't accomplish anything.  It would be better to have rational discussion.  I was hoping that the author of the ISIS quote was perhaps using the term "treasure hunter" differently than many casual detectorists and not knowing how many friends of archaeology might be offended.  The gross insensitivity to the suffering of the victims of ISIS is really hard to overlook.

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Just so I won't be accused of taking the quote out of context, below is the text of the email Joe D. received in response to his email to the author of the "stop treasure hunting" web site, which I referred to in my previous post.

Precisely because I am in academia I have the moral obligation to give my informed opinion on treasure hunters or anybody that destroys the world's cultural heritage or the world's environment. I do not talk lightly about treasure hunters. I have been around for many years and when I say that treasure hunters are no better than ISIS, except that they do not film themselves, I know what I am talking about. I have seen treasure hunters destroy amazingly important testimonies of our common past to get a few artifacts that shine.

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Don't forget the Robert Marx lecture at FIT on Feb. 20.

11/13/17 Report - At Least One Treasure Beach Improved by This Weekends High Surf. Finds Being Made. Robert Marx Lecture Tomorrow.

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

John Brooks This Morning About 7:30.

I went out to see what was happening at the beach.  We had another full day of rough surf, yet John Books and Frederick Douglas beaches were little changed.  The tide had been high up on the beach.  There were some shallow scallops that weren't there yesterday.  That was about it.  No erosion, and the beach was mushy.

Sorry the pictures aren't so good today.  I was having trouble getting the mode I wanted and didn't get the camera settings right until after I came home.

John Brooks About 7:30 AM Today.

The Fort Pierce South Jetty Beach is very eroded.  There is about a seven foot high cliff there near the inlet.  You could see two or three distinctly different layers of sand.  I did a little detecting with the ACE there and picked up several coins in short order but nothing of interest.

It was raining on and off at the beach again today.  Also occasional thunder and lightning.

A couple of who were snorkeling south of the inlet Saturday were reportedly washed out to sea and not found.  Be careful of the currents and rough surf.

There was at least one treasure beach that was improved by the rough surf of this weekend.  I'm not going to name that beach right now because I don't want everyone going there, and the people that found it on their own would hate me if I told.  Also there might be some other places that are producing that you wouldn't want to miss.

Some finds were being made today.  Here are a couple early examples.

One Find Today
Photo by Darrel S.

Another Find Fro Today
Photo by Darrel S.

Notice the pattern in the lead.

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Sir Robert Marx has been described as the true father of underwater archaeology. He is a pioneer among American scuba divers and best known for his work with shipwrecks and sunken treasure.

Now, the community is invited to hear him discuss the history of exploration and discovery in the Pacific Ocean during a free public lecture at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 14, at the Gleason Performing Arts Center on the campus of Florida Institute of Technology.

The lecture, “History of Exploration of the Pacific,” is sponsored by Florida Tech and hosted by the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi...
Thanks for Warren D. for submitting this like that you can use for more about the lecture.

https://ecurrent.fit.edu/blog/campus/happenings/sir-robert-marx-to-lecture-on-pacific-exploration-november-14-2017/

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Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net