6/18/20 Report - Consignments Wanted. Making Hay When Sun Shines. Dust Storm.

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

Additionally from Sedwick - 

As you have probably heard by now, the ANA World's Fair of Money on August 4-8 in Pittsburgh has been suspended. We always look forward to going to the ANA show because it allows us to see our fellow collectors and dealers plus express our shared interest in numismatics.

Since some of our consignors like to see us in person at the ANA show, here is what we can offer you to make consigning an easy process:

- We are extending our consignment deadline to August 21, 2020.
- For qualifying consignments, we will pay for your shipping costs or send you a shipping label to get your consignments to us, fully insured.
- For large collections where consultation and pick up in person is safe, beneficial and feasible, we can travel to you.
- We offer discounted, expedited grading services for coins and paper money through PCGS, NGC, and PMG.
- We are able to meet with consignors by appointment at our office in Winter Park, Florida using proper health precautions.
- If you're planning on also buying in our auction, we can trade your consignment proceeds against your auction purchases.
- We are ready to consult with you at any point on what and how to consign by reaching us at 407-975-3325 or office@sedwickcoins.com.

Our May Treasure Auction 27 was a fantastic success as we saw strong bidding, a very high sell-through rate of over 95%, and a record amount of new and returning bidders.

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I've been describing some of the mistakes I've made in the past.  So far in recent weeks I've discussed and given examples of (1) careless digging and recovery resulting in scratched or damaged finds, (2) defective containers for carrying new finds, for example hole in pocket or goodie bag, (3) inadequate bag or container for carrying large items, for example plastic bags ripped by large fossils (4) inadequate bag or container for carrying bottles or fragile items resulting in fragile items like bottles being broken while be carried in plastic bags, and (5) leaving dug or found items on beach for later recovery, which often doesn't work out well.

Here is another mistake that I made on more than one occasion.  I've talked about this one before.  It is the mistake of being too casual when detecting conditions are exceptionally good.  When conditions are right and items are being found, don't stop until you have thoroughly cleaned out the area or you are forced to stop for some reason.

I've told about this situation before, but when I arrived at the beach I found the front beach cut back several feet, and there was a drop into the shallow water where there were tons of targets.  There were targets in every square foot for a hundred yards or more along the beach.  I remember that I dug over $20 in quarters in a hunt of about four hours.  Of course there were better things besides the coins, including many rings and pieces of jewelry.  This was in Fort Lauderdale many years ago.

After my first hunt of four hours, I left to pick up my wife or something, but I knew that I had not scratched the surface and there was much more remaining to be found.  I returned the next day and found conditions virtually unchanged.  I found about as many coins and as much jewelry as the day before.  I did about a four hour hunt again, and planned on returning the next day.  As I left I looked up and saw a front moving in.   That should have been a clue.

The next day when I returned, there was almost nothing to be found.  My mistake was not staying as long as I could and absolutely getting as much as I could while conditions were right.  As they say, "Make hay while the sun shines."

Unfortunately I've repeated that mistake several times.  Another time was years ago when I was still living in the Fort Lauderdale area.  I was traveling from Fort Lauderdale to Palm Coast to visit my parents.  It was Christmas eve, or the day before.  Anyhow, I stopped at Fort Pierce to do a little metal detecting.  It was freezing.  One of the bridges over the interstate had ice on it up north around Daytona.  ,

When I stopped at Fort Pierce, I got out of the car.  It was cold and the wind was ripping.  One other fellow showed up with a metal detector.   He was bundled up.  I saw him get ready to detect, but with the cold wind blowing, he just shook his head, turned around and left without doing any detecting.

My wife stayed in the car because of the cold.  I didn't stay on the beach long, but picked up several half reales in probably around twenty minutes.  That was another time I should have stayed longer.  There aren't many days like, so when it does happen, make the best of it.  I can think of quite a few times when I was too casual about a rare opportunity, but I there are two examples.

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Saharan Dust Storm Headed For Gulf Coast.

Source: See weather.com link below.

See https://weather.com/storms/hurricane/news/2020-06-16-saharan-dust-atlantic-caribbean-united-states-hurricane-season

The surf is down to around one or two feet on the Treasure Coast today.  The tides are small, and there is nothing on the National Hurricane Center map now.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

6/13/20 Report - Treasure Coast Beaches Building. A Morning On The Beach. One More TG Mistake.

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

John Brooks Beach This Morning.

I went out to take a look at a few beaches this morning.  My first stop was at John Brooks.  As you can see above there was a lot of seaweed.  There was a flat front beach that was building.  You can also see a small cut in the photo.

John Brooks Beach This Morning.

Frederick Douglass Beach This Morning.

Frederick Douglass, as usual, was very much like John Brooks.  Notice the waves breaking right on edge of the front beach. 

The difference at Walton Rocks is the bar about 75 yards out and the small dip in the water in front of the beach.  The waves are breaking on the bar.

Unlike John Brooks and Frederick Douglass, you don't have the flat front beach at Walton Rocks.

Walton Rocks This Morning.

I did about twenty minutes of detecting in the dry sand this morning and found a handful of coins and a silver shepherd's hook earring and small turtle.  I don't know what that is mounted in the center of the earring.   No good finds, but I enjoyed spending a little time before it got real hot.

Morning Finds.

I was actually surprised by the number of easy finds this morning, even if they aren't much good.

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Captain Jonah says he is off to a slow start but will be sending photos when good finds are made.

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I've been listing some mistakes I've made.  Here is another.

Yesterday I posted some fossils.  I was looking for a dire wolf tooth that I found near the water's edge one day all by itself.  I precisely remember finding it and where, and I remember the research I did on it, but I couldn't find it when I wanted to.   I have one box of fossils and some of them are stored in bags with their labels, but I have fossils in other places too.  The mistake is pretty obvious: I wasn't organized enough in how I stored things.  Some were just thrown in a box together.  Some were in different places.  Right now I don't know where the dire wolf tooth is and there are probably a number of others that I couldn't find right away if I wanted to.  That doesn't apply to just fossils.

You might think you'll remember where things are and there is no reason to take the time, but if you are like me, the years will pass and you won't be able to locate finds when you want to.  That is an easy enough problem to solve, but you have to decide it is worth taking the time.  It might not seem like it now, but it will later.

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For an insightful look at COVID-19, try the book that Amazon.com tried to censure - Unreported Truths about COVID-19 and Lockdowns: Part 1: Introduction and Death Counts and Estimates by Alex Berenson. Amazon.com made tons of money as the primary online shopping retailer during the lockdowns.

Here is the link.

https://www.amazon.com/Alex-Berenson/e/B001JRVEO4%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share

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Don't expect beach conditions to change much for at least a few days.  There is no tropical activity on the NHC map right now.

The surf is running around two or three feet, and the surf is small.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

6/9/20 Report - Fossilized Sea Shells. Fenn Treasure Found. One Mistake I've Repeated.

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

Fossil Shells.

Photo and Find by Melissa B.

I received these photos and the following email from Melissa B.

I found your article on fossil shells with unique crystals yesterday. I was searching the internet after some interesting finds I stumbled across with my kids in an estuary in Florida. These shells were exposed after the heavy rain we’ve had and I believe they were brought in with the parking lot fill. They were all in the parking lot area of the estuary especially in the eroded areas from heavy rain. Here are pics of what we found. Can you help me to identify? There were some interesting crystals on a few of the shells also.

Fossil Shell

Photo by Melissa B.

I've done a few posts on fossilized shells.  Here are a couple.

https://treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com/2015/05/52815-report-unique-beach-treasures.html

https://treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com/2018/07/72918-report-floridas-most-collected.html

Fossilized shells can be fascinating treasures.  Some are fluorescent and some have nice gem crystals.

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As I reported yesterday, the Forrest Fenn treasure has been found.

Millionaire art collector Forrest Fenn was told he would die of cancer in 1998. And wanting to leave his mark on the world and help others get into the outdoors, he devised a plan: Fenn decided he would take his 10-by-10-by-6-inch bronze Romanesque chest and load it with his best treasures — ancient jewels, gold, jade, diamonds (now estimated to be worth 2 million dollars)—take it into the mountains, and die beside it.

But, before dying, he would “architect” a poem that, if solved, would lead an explorer exactly to the treasure.

A twist of good fortune kept Forrest alive, and he now resides in Santa Fe where he writes books, gives hints, and frequently engages with those on the chase.

That comes from this Fenn Treasure web site (link below).

https://www.fftreasure.com/

Forrest Fenn received the treasure of life for more years than maybe he was expecting.  Despite the prognosis, Fenn is still alive, and has mixed feelings about the treasure being found.

It took years for the puzzle to be solved and the treasure found.  It undoubtedly took a lot of persistence to solve that problem.

The person that found the Fenn treasure has chosen to remain anonymous.


A treasure chest full of gold, jewels and other valuables worth more than $1m (£790,000) is said to have been found in the Rocky Mountains.

Antiquities collector Forrest Fenn says he hid the bronze chest more than a decade ago, creating a treasure hunt for people to find it.

Thousands of people searched for it, many quitting their jobs and using up their savings. Four people died.

Now, Mr Fenn says, a man from "back East" has finally tracked it down.

"It was under a canopy of stars in the lush, forested vegetation of the Rocky Mountains and had not moved from the spot where I hid it more than 10 years ago," Mr Fenn, an 89-year-old millionaire from New Mexico, said in a statement...

Here is the link for more about that.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-52966449

It took ten years and a lot of persistence.

The Rockies offer many treasures, natural and otherwise.

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I'll describe one more of my mistakes today.  I often learn from my mistakes, but some take more repetitions than others.

This mistake doesn't apply to small finds like coins, but this is a mistake I've made more times than I care to remember.

When walking a long distance and expecting to return the same route (along the shore, for example), I'll often leave larger finds to pick up later when I am on  my way back.  Several things can happen.  One is that I get focused on my metal detecting and pass up the item on the way back.  That is easy enough to do.  Someone else can also find the item, but sometimes I just forget about it on the way back.

One thing I often do is take the item up to the dunes and put it where it is not likely to be noticed. Since there is a good chance I'll have my nose to the ground on the return trip, some kind of marker can be helpful - maybe a big line in the sand a pile of stones or something that.   A rising tide or big wave can remove a line or move or obscure other markers, so that doesn't always work out.

If the item is very good, don't take any chances.  When you really don't want to take a chance on losing an item, it is better to not leave it behind.  Too many things can happen.

You can find some pretty big things.  I once carried this six-foot iron anchor on my shoulder a couple hundred yards and up over a high dune.  I wouldn't even attempt it today.

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Wednesday the surf will still be small, but later in the day it will start to increase.



Defund the criminals.

TreasureGuide@comcast.net

6/7/20 Report - Meaning and Folding of Burial Flags. Being Prepared for Larger and Different Kinds of Finds. Cristobal.

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

Source: http://wvutoday-archive.wvu.edu/resources/1/1251677894.jpg

With the current controversy regarding showing respect for the flag, I thought it would be helpful to actually look at some of the symbolism and significance of burial flags and memorial flags for veterans.

Here is an excerpt from one site.


Here is how to understand the flag that laid upon it and is surrendered to so many widows and widowers: Do you know that at military funerals, the 21-gun salute stands for the sum of the numbers in the year 1776?

Have you ever noticed that the honor guard pays meticulous attention to correctly folding the United States of America Flag 13 times? You probably thought it was to symbolize the original 13 colonies, but we learn something new every day.

To understand what the flag draped coffin really means.

• The 1st fold of the flag is a symbol of life.
• The 2nd fold is a symbol of the belief in eternal life...

Etc.

Here is that link for more.

http://www.lanesboroamericanlegion.org/meaning-of-the-flag-draped-coffin.html

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A few days ago I started a series of posts on mistakes I've made after finding an object.  The first one that I discussed was having a hole in your pocket or goodie bag resulting in finds being lost before getting them home, and the second mistake that I already discussed was damaging an object during recovery, for example hitting it with your scoop or digger.   I'll discuss the third mistake today, which as to do with bottle finds.

Before starting with that new mistake though, I just remembered another example that fits in with the hole in pocket or bag mistake.  One day there were a lot of fossils on the beach - some of them being large. A few of them were a foot long, and some were heavy.  It was an unusual occasion.  I've only seen so many and such large fossils on the beach that one time in many years.

I wasn't planning on hunting fossils that day and had never found so many.  As a result, I got caught unprepared.  It caught me by surprise and all I had with me to use was some plastic shopping bags. Not only were some of the fossils large, but some were also pointed.

As I gathered fossils like a kid picking up Easter eggs, I stuffed them into my bag, which eventually broke, and some of the fossils came out as I walked far down the beach.  I lost some good fossils before I discovered that one of my bags broke.  I learned from that experience that it is a good idea to have some large and sturdy bag or container with me.  A back pack, big sturdy bucket or something like that can come in very handy.

Think about it.  If you ever come across that treasure chest or cache of silver bar that you always dreamed of finding, how are you going to carry it?   It won't fit in your pocket, and if you plan to come back for it later, you might be disappointed about how that works out.  It isn't like you are out in a remote location where there are no other people or where there are no tides or waves or anything.  The beach is not a good place to leave finds with the hope of retrieving them later.  A big heavy duty bag, bucket or container might save you.

Obviously you can't be prepared for every situation, but you might keep things in your car that might come in handy.   I have a large (about three by four feet) heavy duty bag  that I keep in the trunk of my car.  I've carried some big heavy stuff in that bag, but there are times when even that would not do the job.  You might not always need something like that, but you don't want to lose your best find just because you weren't prepared for something bigger or heavier than you expected to find.

Now I'll get back to the mistake that I planned to discuss today.  It is related - not having some materials for padding or packing fragile items.

One of the great things about treasure hunting, is that you never know what you might find.  The first time I found some good old bottles was after Hurricane Andrew.  That was my first experience collecting old bottles. I was metal detecting, when I noticed some old bottles rolling in the surf.  I took a look at some of them, and they were embossed and appeared to be old.  I didn't know much of anything about old bottles at the time, but decided to collect them.  Of course, that wasn't what I was thinking of doing when I went metal detecting that day, so I was totally unprepared to carry back a lot of old bottles.  I found some old plastic bags laying in the trash along the beach and used those.  They worked on that occasion.  I sold some of those bottles but still have a few of them.

Plastic bags aren't great for carrying old bottles or other breakable items though.  One day when I found some good bottles, I had a couple plastic bags along with me, and filled two or three bags.  I had two bags in one hand.  When I walked the bags would swing, and so eventually the two bags clashed together and my best bottle got broke.

Here is one way to find out which is your best bottle -  it is always the one that breaks.  If two bottles clash together, the best one will break.   That is my experience.  When the two swinging bags came together, the bottom corner of one bottle hit the weakest spot of the best bottle and broke the best bottle.   It was an pre-1900 Busch beer bottle.  I never again found one that old.

Plastic bags are easy to carry in your pocket and can come in handy, but they aren't good for carrying  heavy, sharp, or fragile items.  If you get caught in an unexpected situation and only have some plastic bags for carrying fragile finds, you can do what I learned to do - pad or pack the fragile items with something.  I've found, for example, that seaweed can be used to pad bottles.

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Cristobal is hitting the north Gulf coast.  According to the NHC...

We'll have a small surf and big tides on the Treasure Coast.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

6/3/20 Report - Edge of Empire Symposium Topics. Mistakes I've Made and Learned From. Tropical Storm Cristobal.

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

Tropical Strorm Cristobal

Source: MagicSeaWeed.com.

Tropical Storm Cristobal looks to be  headed towards Louisiana.

Source: Ventusky.com

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I've been finding a lot of good information online.  Below is a link that will take you to articles on the following twelve topics.  You can read any and all of them online.

1. A group for the study of iberian seafaring – Filipe Vieira de Castro  7
2. The iberian caravel: tracing the development of a ship of discovery –  George R. Schwarz  23
3. Exploration and empire: iconographic evidence of iberian ships  of Discovery – Katie Custer  43
4. The nau of the Livro náutico: the textual excavation of a portuguese  indiaman – Alex Hazlett  63
5. The spanish navy and the ordenanzas of 1607, 1613, and 1618 –  Blanca Rodriguez Mendoza   79
6. Diego García de palacio and the instrucción náutica of 1587 –  Erika Laanela  153 7. Rigging an early 17th – century portuguese indiaman – Filipe  Vieira de Castro, Nuno Fonseca and Tiago Santos  177
8. Santo António de Tanná: story, excavation, and reconstruction –  Tiago Miguel Fraga  201
9. Spanish shipbuilding in the eighteenth century: the album  of the Marques De La Victoria – J. Bradshaw Coombes  215
10. Ship timber: forests and ships in the iberian peninsula during  the age of discovery – Pearce Paul Creasman  235
11. Nautical astrolabes – Gustavo Garcia  249
12. Design of a computer-based frame to store, manage, and divulge  information from underwater archaeological excavations: the pepper  wreck case – Carlos Monroy and Richard Furuta 275

Here is the link.

https://www.academia.edu/2026686/Edge_of_Empire._Proceedings_of_the_Symposium_held_at_the_2006_Society_for_Historical_Archaeology_Annual_Meeting_Sacramento_California?email_work_card=title

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I was thinking of some of the mistakes I've made over the years and came up with a quick list of ten.  These are mistakes I regretted enough that I kept them in mind over the years and have avoided repeating them too many times.  Some are very simply yet costly.   The one I'll mention today is very simple, yet it is something I never want to repeat.

It occurred around thirty years ago.   I parked at a state park, and walked probably a good mile or so to get to a shallow water area in front of a high-end resort that I liked to detect.  The people gathered in a small area with a sandy bottom.   I guess the surrounding sea grass kept them from spreading out more, so that helped me.   It was a small exclusive resort so there wasn't a lot of people, and there weren't many coins or good items, for that matter, but I could usually pick up one good find.  It was  not easy to get too, but there was one fellow who worked at the resort who also regularly detected the area.  He was closely watching me and what I was doing when I dug up a gold chain in the very shallow water right in front of him.  I saw him react with disgust upon seeing the flash of gold in the sunlight when I lifted my scoop out of the water.  It was a very delicate 14K Italian chain with a small Jesus charm.  Very pretty.

Anyhow I stuffed the chain in my shirt pocket and started my long walk back to the car.  When I got to the car I noticed the chain was missing from my pocket.  Additional inspection revealed a small hole in the corner of my pocket.  I had to walk back most of that mile or so before refinding the chain partly exposed in the wet sand.  I learned that it only takes a very small hole for a thin gold chain to escape.  I also learned to check my pockets before putting any good finds in them.

There was also the time my wife thought she found a very good spot and was picking up a lot of coins.  She discovered she was picking up some of the same coins because they were falling through a hole in the leather marble pouch she was using.  We both had a laugh over that one.  At least it was just coins and she didn't have to walk a mile to find her losses.

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Soaring and Mourning.

What a day of contrasts!  Saturday we saw the human spirit soar towards the stars and fall to the depths of hate and despair.  When the human spirit is free, it soars to the heavens, but when wounded, it burns cities.  The riots of this weekend reminded me very much of the Viet Nam war era protests  and riots when I was a psychology professor 50 years ago.  The only thing that surprised me this time, is that it didn't happen sooner.  The pressure was building before the George Floyd killing lit the fuse.

As Viktor Frankl, Holocaust survivor and psychiatrist, wrote: man's primary drive is not pleasure; it is the discovery and pursuit of meaning.  The life of the spirit must be maintained along with that of the  body.  When the God-given rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are taken away, you can expect an explosion.   

I am not justifying or excusing illegal or destructive behavior - just taking a look at one psychological factor that contributed to the explosiveness of the situation and at the same time holds the solution.

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The bush burned and was not consumed.
TreasureGuide@comcast.net