5/12/20 Report - Metal Detecting Silverware and Conductivity Numbers. Sterling Silver Finds. And Mystery Piece Identified.

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

Silverware Used for Metal Detector Conductivity Readout Test.

As you probably know, I highly recommend testing your metal detector with a wide variety of types of targets so you get to know what your detector is trying to tell you.  I used the five examples shown above for a simple test I'll report on today.

From top to bottom is a two-tined for that I presumed to be made of steel.  Second is a spoon that is clearly marked stainless.  Third is a knife marked "Robeson 'Frozen Heat'".  Fourth is a fork marked "sterling" and then a marked sterling spoon.

Using the equinox the following conductivity numbers were obtained for each example, working from the top of the photo to the bottom.

Two-tined fork               -5 to -2

Stainless spoon              -5 to -2

Frozen Heat knife            2 -   5

Sterling fork                   18 - 22

Sterling spoon                28 - 32

Of course the numbers varied a little, but the above ranges are fairly good representations.  The position of the item matters, as does the shape.  

I believe the sterling spoon produced higher numbers than the sterling fork because of the flat round shaped area on the spoon.

My tentative conclusion is that you can tell the difference between an steel piece of flatware and a sterling or silver piece by the conductivity numbers.  The numbers for the sterling pieces was very much higher and in a relatively consistent range.  

I believe that experiments like this can help you better identify buried targets in the field, although when I'm in an interesting area, unless I have time constraints or something, I'm going to dig everything anyhow.

I should have included a silver plated item or two.  I might do that in the future.

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A Couple Silver Forks Marked Sterling.

If you've been keeping up with my daily posts, you know that I've been going back and looking through some old tableware finds.  You'll find a lot of tableware if you search old home sites, and you'll find some on the beaches and in the water as well.  Some of it will be old, some fancy and some plain.  The fanciest or oldest pieces aren't always the most valuable.  With current silver prices of $15.65 per oz. or about $.50 per gram, as it was this morning, a plain piece of sterling silverware can be worth a few dollars in silver content.

The two forks shown top of this post both weigh over 1.5 ounces each.  That figures to be about $20 in silver content for each - not a big treasure, yet enough to pay for some batteries.

Sterling Silver Fork and Spoon.

The sterling fork shown above is just over 1.5 ounces and the spoon just under 1 oz.

Of course sterling silver is not pure silver -  only 92.5 percent, so you have to take that into account.

Unfortunately most tableware finds will be stainless steel or plated rather than sterling or coin silver, but the oldest or most ornate will not necessarily be worth the most.  The fork and spoon shown above look plain and modern, yet have good silver content.

As for the companies, it gets confusing.  Here is what Wikipedia says about the International Silver Company.

In Meriden and nearby Wallingford and Middletown, the companies that were banded together to form the International Silver Company included these companies: Meriden Britannia Company, Meriden Silver Plate Co. , Middletown Plate Company, C. Rogers & Brother, Simpson, Hall Miller and Co., Simpson Nickel Company, Watrous Manufacturing Company, and the Wilcox Silver Plate Co., In Hartford, the following silver companies also became part of the corporation: Barbour Silver Company, Rogers Cutlery and William Rogers Manufacturing Company. Other Connecticut companies that became part of the corporation also include Holmes & Edwards Silver Company in Bridgeport; Plate Silver Co. in Derby; Norwich Cutlery in Norwich; Rogers and Brothers, and Rogers and Hamilton in Waterbury. 

From outside New England were Manhattan Silver Plate in Lyons, New York; and Standard Silver Company, Ltd. in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Into the 20th century, many silver designs carry either the International Silver Company brand, or the pre-existing brand continues, or both are listed as the design maker.

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A couple days ago I posted a photo of what appeared to be an old spoon showing a globe with silverware maker's mark.  I asked for help identifying the mark and the readers of this blog came through.

Here is what they found.

American Silver Company Maker's Marks 

Found by Mike M. (left) and JorgeY. (right)

Moselle Pattern Spoon

Submitted by Dan B.

Mike and Jorge found the makers marks as shown above.  Then Dan added the photo of the Moselle pattern spoon, and Alberto looked up the patent number and found the following ad for an American Silver Company sugar spoon having the same patent number as the spoon I was asking about.

Submitted by Alberto S.

Thanks guys!  I think that nails it down.  It appears to be a Moselle pattern spoon made by the American Silver Company in the early 20th century.

As I mentioned above, it can get confusing.  The companies that made silverware were often bought out and changed names.  The American Silver Company was the result of a buyout and then later the International Silver Company bought the American Silver Company along with other similar companies.

I haven't identified any marks telling what it is made of but I assume that it is silver plated like the item shown by Alberto.  Perhaps some of the other numbers on the spoon tell that.  I'll have that tested some day.

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The surf today is 2 - 4 feet with a northeast swell.

Source: MagicSeaWeed.com

Happy hunting,
Treasureguide@comcast.net

8/8/19 Report - Treasure Coast Beaches and Salvage Boats. Maya Wars and Mexico Appartions. Dug Lapel Pin.

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

These beach photos were taken around noon on Aug. 7 by DJ.  Thanks DJ.

If you look closely, a salvage boat is shown in each photo.  They aren't working real close to shore.

As you know it has been hot and we've been getting rain nearly everyday.  I'm sure some of the swimming beaches are getting some decent action.

There are currently no weather systems shown on the National Hurricane Center maps for our region.

Add caption

Stay hydrated and do not get overheated.  Also watch out for lightning.  You might be able to hear it first as static in your earphones.

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In 697, flames engulfed the Maya city of Witzna. Attackers from a nearby kingdom in what’s now Guatemala set fires that scorched stone buildings and destroyed wooden structures. Many residents fled the scene and never returned.

This surprisingly early instance of highly destructive Maya warfare has come to light thanks to a combination of sediment core data, site excavations and hieroglyphic writing translations, say research geologist David Wahl of the U.S. Geological Survey in Menlo Park, Calif., and his colleagues. Organized attacks aimed at destroying cities began during ancient Maya civilization’s heyday, when Witzna and other cities thrived in lowland regions of Central America, the scientists report August 5 in Nature Human Behavior...

Here is the link for more about that.

https://www.sciencenews.org/article/ancient-maya-warfare-flared-surprisingly-early

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When I give a beach conditions rating, which I haven't done for a while because of the unchanging conditions, it is a rating of the conditions for finding old shipwreck items.  Modern items are lost everyday, and if you visit beaches where there is a lot of activity, you can almost always find something.

Yesterday I showed a diamond ring.  Here is a less valuable find.

Find.

I dug this up and didn't know what it was.  Looks like a lapel pin.

The back shows it is sterling silver and the stone tests as a sapphire.

After some research it looks like it is the insignia for Humana Hospital, which was operating on the Treasure Coast in the 1990s.  Probably some sort of employee recognition pin.

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On April 25, 1631, St. Michael the Archangel appeared in Tlaxcala, Mexico to a 17-year-old named Diego Lázaro de San Francisco who was married to Francisca Castillian Xuchitl.

The apparition occurred as everyone was processing in celebration of a previous apparition of St. Michael to St. Gregory the Great (April 25, 590 A.D) during a great plague which St. Michael ended. The peoples of the new world were themselves battling a plague (a type of smallpox) and St. Michael appeared to Diego Lázaro to tell him about healing waters for the people...

Here is the link for some interesting 17th century New World history.

http://atxcatholic.com/index.php/2019/08/angels-dragons-xxii-st-michael-the-archangel-in-mexico/?fbclid=IwAR37HPVsdOCdHEbPAMlS35bQTcPmvFM0pOpIU8Tk9bAHUvN9pbu3GmP9rdk#.XUwXNehKjIW

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No new storms.

Happy hunting,
Treasureguide@comcast.net

3/8/16 Report - Civil War Blockade Runner. Sterling Silver and Jade. Blue Dragon Creatures. Surfs Up.

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

Sonar of Civil War Era Steamer.

The vessel is believed to possibly be the remains of one of three blockade runners used to penetrate the wall of Union naval vessels blocking the port of Wilmington during the Civil War. The goal of the Union blockade was to keep supplies from reaching the Confederacy through one of its most important ports and to prevent the export of cotton and other marketable items by the Southerners. The wreck is located 27 miles downstream from Wilmington near Fort Caswell at the mouth of the Cape Fear River, and is the first Civil War-era vessel discovered in the area in decades...

Here is the link for the rest of the story.

http://www.ncdcr.gov/press-release/significant-civil-war-era-shipwreck-discovered-nc-coast

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Bracelet Found Near Fort Pierce When A Tree Was Removed.

I posted this photo a few days ago.  It was taken to a jeweler who identified it as being sterling silver and jade.  I had the metal right but not the stone.  I haven't arrived at an opinion on this one yet.

Here is what one site (link below) said about jade.

Jade  A smooth green stone with even texture that has long been used for carving and for jewelry.The term jade refers to two minerals: jadeite and nephrite. These minerals are similar in appearance but jadeite has more intense color and translucency so is more highly valued and thought to be the true jade. Colors of jade vary from mottled green and white, to yellow, pink, purple, and black. The most valuable form of jade, imperial jade, is emerald green and comes from Myanmar. Jade is also found in California, Mexico, and Central and South America. Jade is an ancient symbol of love and virtue. It is thought to protect the kidneys, liver, spleen, heart, larynx, thymus, and thyroid. Ancient people thought that wearing jade would increase body strength and add longevity.

Here is the link for that.

http://www.horsekeeping.com/jewelry/stones2.htm

Here is an interesting tid bit.

Dating back to the time of primitive man, silver has been referred to by many different naming conventions. The story of how the word "sterling" was incorporated into the name is rooted in 12th-century lore. As payment for English cattle, an association of eastern Germans compensated the British with silver coins dubbed "Easterlings." Eventually, the Easterling was widely accepted as a standard of English currency. The name was ultimately abbreviated to "Sterling," which is now used to refer to the highest grade of silver metal.

The official designation of "sterling" to a piece of silver indicates that it contains at least 92.5% of pure silver. The remaining 7.5% can be comprised of any other metal alloy, most commonly copper. Although it may seem that an even higher silver content would be desirable, that's not actually the case. Metal alloys with a silver content of more than 92.5% are too pliable to be used without suffering from dents and dings. The second alloy is required to ensure the metal's stability and resilience.

Here is the source link for that.

http://www.silvergallery.com/history-of-sterling-silver/

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Here is another creature with a sting showing up along the coast - the blue dragon.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/broward/fl-blue-dragon-invades-beach-20160305-story.html

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On the Treasure Coast the surf is up to something like 3 - 5 feet.  The tides are pretty big too.  Unfortunately the wind is somewhat southerly.

I still haven't been able to get out to the beach to take a look, so am not sure exactly what is happening.

Someday I'll be able to do a beach survey again.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

2/8/16 Report - Nicely Marked and Monogrammed Silver Tag or Label Find.

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

Marked Silver Found by Dan B.

Dan B. found this monogrammed silver label or tag.  The monogram seems to me to be "FMH."  Maybe that is it.

This is a very good example of marked silver.  Nice find Dan!

Notice also the marks to the left of that.  I think the top mark (HP??) is the makers mark.

Closer View of Marks.

It should not be too difficult to identify the makers mark.  There are comprehensive lists of silver makers marks.

The one mark that I am fairly confident about is the lion.  The walking lion indicates that the silver is sterling (.925 pure).

I can't really make out the mark on the right.  The "n" could be the date letter.  Letters indicate a specific date.  The font or style of the letter is important.  There are letter sequences in different styles.

I am assuming that this is British silver.  I'm not absolutely sure of that.

Maybe someone who has studies silver marks or has more time to research it can help Dan.  Let me know if you can add information.

Here is one good source for looking up silver marks.

http://www.925-1000.com/

The tag seems to be over an inch long.  I wonder if it might be a label for a wine bottle.  It seems to be about the right size and shape, but I don't see where it might be attached to a chain, and many quality wine labels are more ornate.

What do you think?

Here is one web site where you can view antique silver wine labels.

http://www.steppeshillfarmantiques.com/silver-and-porcelain/silver/wine-sauce-labels

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That is a nice instructive example of marked silver.  If you haven't investigated something like that before, this will provide a good exercise.  Look into the web sites and try to figure out the marks.

I have a couple other posts that I'm working on, but they aren't ready yet.  I'll therefore leave that for some other day.

Please let me know if you figure out some of these marks or can figure out what the item might be.

I also suggest you take a look at yesterday's post if you haven't already, and send me your thoughts on the citizen archaeology permit proposed legislation.  Also, express your feelings to your representatives.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net