11/20/18 Report - Eight Foot Surf Predicted. Gold Reliquary Cross Found. Knights' Gold. Popular Posts.

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

Source: ArchaeologyinBulgaria.com

A 12th century cross, which is a reliquary (engolpion) containing a particle from the Holy Cross from Jesus Christ’s crucifixion, and is the first known artifact of its kind that is made of pure gold, has been discovered by archaeologists in a recently found medieval church in the Trapesitsa Fortress in Bulgaria’s Veliko Tarnovo.

The previously unknown 13th century church was discovered earlier this fall in the Trapesitsa Fortress, one of the citadels of medieval Tarnovgrad (today’s Veliko Tarnovo), capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire (1185-1396/1422)…

Here is the link for more about that.

http://archaeologyinbulgaria.com/2018/11/14/world-first-medieval-gold-cross-reliquary-with-holy-cross-particle-discovered-in-trapesitsa-fortress-in-bulgarias-veliko-tarnovo/

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I posted the ten most popular posts of the past year.  You'll see them on the left of the first page of the blof.  The most popular post of the past 12 months was posted last December and featured the Farleigh Dickenson Jr. ring that was lost decades ago and then found and returned.  Great story!

There were a few from December, which you'd expect because they've been out there longer and people continue to look at them.

The second most popular post of the past year was about proposed Florida legislation that was believed to restrict access to Florida beaches and who to contact to stop that legislation.  I don't really know what happened with all of that.

The third was one of a series of posts that I called Ole Timer Talk.  It was about a fellow who saw a pile of' possibly plates (possibly KangHsi) uncovered by erosion.   It was one of those that was posted in December of 2017.

Fourth was a post that really got a lot of attention in 2018 even though it was originally posted in 2015.  It was about fossilized sea shells with beautiful calcite crystals that were found on the Treasure Coast.

Fifth was a December 2017 post that featured a Viking hoard and what appeared to be an old sailing needle found in North Florida by Chris N.

Sixth was a post that described a hunt resulting ten gold items being found in the water during a single four-hour hunt.  That was one of the Ole Timer Talks.

The seventh most popular post of the last 12 months was about erosion on the Palm Beaches and shipwrecks you could see on Google Earth.

The eighth was about how to learn more about your detector.

The ninth most popular was about one reader's huge success sifting for silver at an old home site.

And the tenth was about a local cob find, among other things.

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I've been reading the book Knights' Gold by Jack Myers.  I've finished most of it.  There are over four hundred pages of text and I just have a few more to go.  It is one of the most interesting treasure/history books that I've ever read. If you are thinking about a Christmas present for a treasure hunter or history buff, this might be a great choice.

The primary focus of the book is on a cache of over 5000 gold coins buried in an old Baltimore row-house basement that was found by a couple of teens in the 1930s.  The author then investigates the history of that cache and ties it to the Knight of the Golden Circle who were accumulating a treasury to fund secession from the union to create a new slave-holding country that would include other geographical areas including places such as Cuba and Mexico.

The book provides a wealth of historical research and tons of references.  I especially appreciated the information surrounding the beginning and conduct of the Civil War and the various political factions.

Besides the cache found in the Baltimore basement, the book talked about other related caches and the huge Doc Noss treasure.

After finishing the last few pages, I'll be locating and reading some of the references listed in the back of the book.

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A big surf is predicted for the day after Thanksgiving.

Source: MagicSeaWeed.com

Looks interesting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

12/30/17 Report - Increasing Surf Along Treasure Coast and Beach Photos. Shards. # 5 Most Popular Post of 2017.

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

Pepper Park Yesterday Morning.
Photo by Alberto S.

Alberto S. visited Pepper Park and Fort Pierce South Jetty Beach yesterday morning and sent these photos. 

Fort Pierce South Jetty Yesterday Morning.
Photo by Alberto S.

Since the higher surf had begun I wanted to see what was happening at the beach, so I went out yesterday afternoon to take a look.  Below is what I saw.

John Brooks Beach Yesterday Afternoon Before High Tide.

Frederick Douglas Beach Yesterday Afternoon Before High Tide.

You can see that at both John Brooks and Frederick Douglas the water was getting up over all the newly accumulated front beach.  It was getting as high as it has been for quite some time and it was not high tide yet.

Frederick Douglas Yesterday Afternoon.

You can see the sand along the berm of the front beach here.  That irregular spot to the left is an area that has been interesting for months now.

The water is getting high enough that there might be some spots that open up at some other beaches after the next high tide or two.

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As you probably know I have been listing the top ten most popular posts of 2017.  It has helped me get an overall perspective on the year and what has been most interesting to the blog's readers.

My number five most popular post of the year was another one of the September posts having to do with Hurricane Irma.  As I said before, five of the top ten posts were done in September.  That was a busy time for Treasure Coast detecting this year.

Number 5 was the 9/12/17 post on some of the first Hurricane Irma finds that were reported.  Below is that link.

http://treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com/2017/09/91217-report-early-irma-treasure-coast.html

A lot of musket balls and lead were found after Irma.

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Consensus on the ceramic pieces found by Gaylen and shown in yesterday's post seems to be that they are not from old shipwreck pottery.  I am always very hesitant to evaluate pieces like that from just seeing photos, and other readers felt the same way, however, they do not look like either olive jar shards or majolica.  My first impression, though I was hesitant to say anything on that basis alone, is that they look too hard and dense and the edges are too sharp.  I was waiting until I studied it a little more before I said anything specific, but the responses I received via email seemed to be in line with my first impression.  I hope to take the time to study those pieces a little more so I can be more specific and perhaps show some examples of the real thing and how they differ.

You might look at my 11/18/12 and 11/19/12 reports, for example.  I am obviously far from an expert on shipwreck pottery or ceramics, but you have to start somewhere.

Here is the link to the 11/18/12 report.

http://treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com/2012/11/111812-report-sherds-or-shards-water.html 

Of course there are books and resources that you can consult that are much more authoritative and thorough.

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The most important topic today is the surf.  As I mentioned yesterday, it is getting bigger and hitting higher up on the beach.  Some spots might open up.

Here are the surf predictions for the next week.

Source; MagicSeaWeed.com.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.netn

12/28/17 Report - Couple Mystery Finds. Old Pottery Site. Popular Posts of the Year. Bigger Surf Coming.

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

Brooch That Held Gem Stones
Find and photo by Chris N.

Chris N. sent the following message with the two photos.

Just wanted to share some more items found near St. Augustine area.

Copper Salt Shaker Top I thought was different and unusual for a find in the sand on a salty shore. No pun intended.

Some type of Broach copper material in which there was some sort of set points in the middle and top where decorative stones or jewels must of been places at one time, but were not present.

I dug both items in loose sand, by water line about 8-10 inch down, strong signal on my machine.

Find and photo by Chris N.

I told Chris I didn't think it looked like a salt shaker top and pointed out the two arrows at the top and bottom.  

Chris then added the following.

The object is about the size of a Salt Shaker Top. Sorry! for not using Ruler. I found it at the waters edge in loose sand which was not corroded, when pulled it out.. That probably means it was washed down from the bank which it probably laid for some time till the Hurricane and Nor east'er came last few weeks ago.

From my understanding talking with some folks who live in and around area where I found objects, one said there as an shipwreck in that area.

I know that the British camped out on the Northern end of Anastasia Island, but the dune areas is off limits to foot traffic and especially digging.

Another good friend of mine informed me that the British marked each item made of copper, or any other precious metals because it belonged to the Crown.

What do you think?

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...It remains a mystery why so much pottery from such a wide time span have been found at this site.

Some speculate a settlement was submerged by a rise in the water level or the pots were sunk there in obscure rituals. Others sidestep romance and suggest it was just a dumping ground for used ceramics....

http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201712270033.html

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Yesterday I started to list the top ten most read posts of 2017.  I gave you numbers 10 and 9.  Working up the list towards the most popular of the year, today I'll give you numbers 8 and 7.

The eighth most read post was not from September like so many of the top ten.  In fact it was from January of 2017.  It was the 1/18/17 post with the heading, A Few Tips For Finding Modern Jewelry On Dry Sand Beaches.

Here is that link.

http://treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com/2017/01/11817-report-few-tips-for-finding.html

The seventh most read post is a much more recent post.  In fact it has only been out there a couple of weeks.  It is the December 12th post, which included one of my very popular Ole Timer Talks.  That one was about a crate of dishes, possibly Kang Hsi, uncovered by heavy erosion on one Treasure Coast;

That post also showed the heavily eroded Fort Pierce South Jetty beach.  It would probably be higher on the list if it was not so recent.

Here is that link.

http://treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com/2017/12/12817-report-erosion-at-one-renourished.html

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For Tuesday a 3 - 5 foot surf is predicted for the Treasure Coast along with a north wind.  That could do something.

A 6 - 9 foot surf is predicted for Tuesday.

Another year is about to fade into history.  I clearly remember starting the year and it doesn't seem that long ago.

Happy hunting.
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

2/9/17 Report - Skeletons of Colonists Being Dug Up In St. Augustine. Gold Reaches $1240 Per Oz. Full Moon and Comet This Weekend.

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

I have a broad range of readers.  Some are very inexperienced.  Some haven't even bought their first detector.  And some have fifty years of experience and have made very significant archaeological discoveries.  That is one broad range indeed!  It is not easy to write something that is appropriate and interesting to both groups although it seems that generally speaking, I've managed.  I'd say it has been as much by accident as intent.  I just write what seems interesting or useful to me.  I find the basics useful because I often need to be reminded of some of the things I already knew.  It is easy to get sloppy and repeat the same old mistakes that I made when I just began detecting.

The most common questions I receive are the following.  I'm coming to Florida, so where should I go to find something good?  What detector should I get?  What are the detecting laws in Florida?  What are these things (iron flakes) that I found?  Those aren't my favorite questions but I can understand why they are asked, but I do appreciate all questions, comments and information.  Reader questions and comments help me tremendously.

I'm always trying to figure out how people respond to my posts.  I use two measures beside email comments.  Those are the number of hits and the number of Google Pluses received for each post.

The number of hits can be misleading because if a link gets posted somewhere else, that can really drive the hits up for that post.  For example, CNN posted once posted a link and that post got several thousands of hits.

There are thousands of posts in my blog.  I don't think some people realize that you can go back and read the posts made years ago, and they don't realize that you can do a keyword search.  There is a search box on the first page of the blog where you can enter your search words.

The read post of January was the 1/5/17 post, Cannon Found In River. Gems and Jewels. Wave Data Site.  Inca Emeralds.  7 Foot Surf Coming?

The most Google Plused Post of January was the 1/4/17 report, Miscellaneous Eye-balled Finds From Today.  FUN Conference. Escudo Gift. Bigger Surf Coming?

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Skeletons of early colonissts are being dug up in downtown St. Augustine.  The site could be the site of the first parish church in the United States.

Fiesta Mall on King and Chalotte Streets is the site of this dig.

Here is the link for more about that.

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/more-early-colonists-bones-discovered-in-st-augustine/404769701

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Gold prices rose to $1240 per ounce in London on Wednesday, regaining almost half of their post-US election slump as Euro stock markets slipped and government bond prices rose amid fresh fears over the currency union's 2017 political outlook...

Here is the link for more about current bullion prices.

https://www.bullionvault.com/gold-news/gold-price-020820172

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Friday night a partial lumar eclipse will begin.  We will have a full moon this weekend.  Also a comet will be seen some places.

Here is a link if you want to find out more about that.

http://blog.spiritdaily.com/news-links/full-moon-and-comet

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I'm starting to wonder if we'll get any good winter storms this year.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

4/17/15 Report - Most Popular Posts. Marginal Signals. Detector Adjustments & Sensitivity. Shipwreck Gold Nugget.

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

Ancient Gold Pendant
Found With Metal Detector.

You probably noticed that I made a change to the first page of the blog.  It now displays eight of the most popular posts of the past.

I think this is a great feature because there are six or seven years of posts now, and that can be overwhelming.  This provides a good new way to see if there is anything you missed or simply want to revisit.

The post about this gold pendant is one of those popular posts.  It is listed at the top of the list.

Last night I stumbled upon an old post reporting on the find of a gold nugget on a Treasure Coast shipwreck treasure beach last year about this time of year.  That particular post didn't make the top eight list.   See the 3/17/14 post for that and more on gold nuggets.

Enjoy.

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Back a few days ago I talked briefly about rounding your curves on your sweep pattern as shown in the illustration below.  In wet sand an abrupt change in direction at the end of each sweep can cause false signals at the end of the sweeps.  This especially occurs when the change in direction occurs where a recent wave stopped and left a line dividing wet sand from dry sand.  If you have your discrimination up or your sensitivity low, you won't hear those transitions, but there can be a cost to that.

An increase in noise near the end of sweeps can cause you to miss what I have called marginal signals, which also frequently occur near the end of the sweeps.  Marginal signals can sound a lot like the noise caused by the coil passing over the line between the wet and dry sand.  Ignoring marginal signals can result in a significant reduction in finds. It can be difficult to distinguish between noise and marginal signals, but double checking will do the job.  When you sweep in both directions over the questionable signal, signals that remain consistent will be good signals.

Adjusting your detector to avoid all false signals can cause a loss in sensitivity that will cause you to miss good but borderline targets that are either small or deep.  Experience can help you distinguish between noise and marginal signals.  Double checking some of those hard to distinguish signals is always a good idea.

It is also a good idea to sweep your coil parallel to the water instead of East/West or towards and away from the water's edge.  That way your detector will not have to adapt to the changes in moisture levels and mineralization on each swing.  That will give you more depth, and if you are running hot, fewer false signals.





If you run your detector hot in all-metals or pinpoint mode, you can hear all of the changes in the moisture and salt levels etc., but you can learn to distinguish those sounds from real targets.  The same goes for black sand.

Many people feel like their detector doesn't work over black sand.  They hear the black sand and give up.  In an all-metals mode you definitely can hear the black sand, but you can also hear many of the targets in or under the black sand.  

An edge in the black sand, made by a scoop or foot print or something, can cause a signal that can be difficult to distinguish from a signal caused by a good target.

It is a good idea to work in different areas of the beach (dry sand, wet sand, and in the water) one at a time instead of making your detector adjust as you go back and forth from one to another.  With some detectors, you will want to ground balance again if and when you go from one of those areas to the next.

One time a fellow using a high-end Minelab gold detector told me that when he was sweeping North/South along the water he could detect targets deeper than when he swung perpendicular to the water.   He said he thought it had to do with the earth's magnetic fields.  He was a very bright fellow, but what he was really observing was the loss in sensitivity caused by his detector trying to adjust to the rapid changes in moisture and salt when sweeping East/West.

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On the Treasure Coast today the surf is a touch higher.  We are having some good negative low tides though. 

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@Comcast.net