5/8/20 Report - Must Read: All About Near Shore Shipwrecks. Pre-Columbian Florida. Erosion.

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

South of Turtle Trail Access Around Noon 5/7

A front came through yesterday and the wind was coming from the north. As I expected, there was a little erosion to some of the beaches.

Ambersands Beach Around 1PM On 5/7

The wind continued into the evening, so there could have been some more erosion.

Ambersands Beach Around 1PM on 5/7

There was one detectorist at Ambersands.  You can barely see him in the photo above.

Treasure Shores Beach Around 1PM on 5/7.

The tides will be high Friday, but the surf will be only two or three feet.

Unfortunately the surf predictions for the weekend are now looking like only three or four feet, at the most.  A few days ago it was looking a little more promising.

I'm adding this photo from Jerry P. showing the damaged access to Seagrape.  The Seagrape access is still closed.

Seagrape Trail Access.

Jerry stopped at Turtle Trail yesterday also and said finds were very few.  He saw no other detectorists.

Thanks Jerry.

Looks like the wind has changed Friday morning.  I wouldn't expect much more erosion.  Probably some filling soon.

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It appears Florida tourism has been going on for thousands of years.

… Archaeologists estimate small-scale ceremonies began at Crystal River around A.D. 50, growing substantially after a residential community settled the site around A.D. 200. Excavations have uncovered minerals and artifacts from the Midwest, including copper breastplates from the Great Lakes. Similarly, conch shells from the Gulf Coast have been found at Midwestern archaeological sites.

"There was this long-distance reciprocal exchange network going on across much of the Eastern U.S. that Crystal River was very much a part of," Duke said.

Religious ceremonies at Crystal River included ritual burials and marriage alliances, Duke said, solidifying social ties between different groups of people. But the community was not immune to the environmental and social crises that swept the region, and the site was abandoned around A.D. 650. A smaller ceremonial site was soon established less than a mile downstream on Roberts Island, likely by a remnant of the Crystal River population....

Here is that link.

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-05/fmon-dtt050120.php

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Anyone seriously interested in tracking shipwrecks or artifacts will want to read The Archaeology of Shore Stranded Shipwrecks of Southern Brazil, a dissertation by Rodrigo De Oliviera Torres, Texas A and M University, 2015.  While the study was conducted in Brazil the same principles apply locally, although the seasons are different and the most significant winds for us are from the north, while their's comes from the south.  Otherwise there is little difference.

I'll give you just a few examples from the dissertation to give you the idea of the types of things you will find in the dissertation.

First is the distribution of shipwrecks in the area (Fig. 19 below).  You will notice a clustering around the bar near the inlet.  Also most wrecks are near shore.  There are relatively few in deeper water.

Four sections of the hull of one wreck was buried on the beach.  Below is one of those after excavation.

Excavated Hull Section.

Below is a diagram showing the relative positions of the four beached sections of the hull.

While sections 1 and 2, which were larger and farther back on the beach, remained in the same relative position, sections 3 and 4 were moved over a three year period.

In the following photos you can see that the two sections are closer together in 2009 than they were in 2006.

It is not surprising, but it illustrates how even large sections like this can be moved on a beach.

Of course, weather and beach dynamics are discussed.  Below is an example.

Remember, the directions are reversed.  Their south winds are more like our north winds.

Notice the alternating erosional and depositional areas.

Here is one more diagram from the dissertation.

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And here is another paragraph from the dissertation.

McNinch et al. (2006), studying artifact deposition in a similar shallow, energetic
setting in North Carolina (Queen Anne’s Revenge site), observed that wrecks in these
conditions will normally settle into the sand via episodic scour processes driven by
storms and inlet migration, favoring preservation of heavier artifacts and hull parts. The
authors concluded that depending on the underlying geology and hydrodynamics, a
shipwreck could in fact settle through several meters of substrate in highly dynamic
settings. Although no systematic survey has ever been carried out in the area
surrounding the sand shoals at the Rio Grande bar, shipwreck debris varying from small
coal chunks to glass bottles and large timbers are frequently washed out onto the beach
after storms, suggesting shipwreck remains are still being reworked (Figure 60).

I don't really like the word "settle" as it is used here, but it does explain that it occurs along with the scour processes.  It is not a passive process, as "settle" would seem to imply.

Well, I can't go over the entire dissertation, but think I've given you enough to let you decide if you want to browse it for yourself.

Here is the link,.

https://www.academia.edu/12852042/The_Archaeology_of_Shore_Stranded_Shipwrecks_of_Southern_Brazil_Torres_2015_?email_work_card=view-paper

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1/10/2017 Report - Beach Conditions. 16th Century Shipwreck Study. Another Surf Increase Predicted

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

Jupiter Inlet Beach
Photo by Joe D.

I didn't get any reports from the Vero or Sebastian areas yet, but did get this report from Jupiter.

Joe D. sent the photo and the following.

Joe  said, Erosion is minimal for now, wind needs to change direction to have an impact! Wave height good though!

Thanks much Joe!

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The readers of this blog are amazing.  They are extremely accomplished and knowledgeable.  I post many of their contributions, but not all of them.  Sometimes they tell me that they don't want their emails posted or that I should keep some comments private.  Even when I can't post something, I'm still glad to get the information and it adds to my knowledge base.   I'm proud to have such knowledgeable readers.  Whether I post their names or comments directly or not, you still benefit from their contributions.

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Not long ago I talked about spikes and in another I talked about wood.  Here is an exceptionally good study of a 16th century Biscayan ship.

There are a variety of reasons or any serious detectorist to become familiar with old ship construction materials and techniques.

Here is a brief excerpt from the 16th century Biscayan ship study.

The second characteristic of 16th-century Biscayan shipwrecks is the use of a combination of oaken treenails and iron nails to fasten the hull planks and frames. The treenails are about 25 mm in diameter and the iron nails are about 10-12 mm square in section. At each joint of a frame timber and a plank, two iron nails and two treenails are typically found. The use of both iron and wooden nails distinguishes Biscayan shipwrecks from more northerly wrecks, such as the Mary Rose, which have only treenails and from more southerly wrecks, especially from the Mediterranean, which have only iron nails. João Baptista Lavanha, a Portuguese naval administrator who died in 1620, left a manuscript on shipbuilding which states that in countries whose ships sailed in cold waters, wooden nails were used, while in countries whose ships sailed in warm seas, iron nails were used. He explained that in warm waters, wooden nails were destroyed by taredo worms and each treenail became a leak5. In Biscay, both oak and iron were plentiful and readily used as nails by shipbuilders. Analysis of the Red Bay ship has shown that the iron nails were used...

And here is the link for the rest of the study.

http://um.gipuzkoakultura.net/pdf/loewe.pdf

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I was listening to the radio and heard what is a very common statement concerning how Southerners respond to cold weather.  They say that your blood thins.  That is not exactly what happens.

Back in the 70s I was conducting research in biofeedback and discovered that the normal response to cold is for the blood to redistribute from the extremities (fingers and toes, for example) to the body core to preserve heat.  I found out that people who lived in South Florida seven or more years, lost that cold adaptation response to a large degree.  So it isn't that the blood "thins." People eventually lose the cold adaptation response.  My fingers really felt the pain of that Monday.

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Here are the surf predictions for the Fort Pierce area.  We'll get a decrease and then an increase around Friday if the predictions are correct.  Something good might happen.  We'll have to wait and see.

Happy hunting,

TreasureGuide@comcast.net

9/26/15 Report - Pierced or "Holed" Coins: Characteristics and Uses. Slight Beach Improvement. Sea Glass Again.

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

Pot Shard and Sea Glass Incidental Finds

Here are a couple beach finds from this morning, They were eye-balled while detecting near low tide.  The blue sea glass is well tumbled and has a nice elongated teardrop shape.


Before I get into my main topic for today, I wanted to mention that the high tides lately has done some good, but not enough for me to  change my Treasure Beaches Detecting Conditions Rating.

I should also say that I would bet that there will be a few small cobs found.  I suspect they will be very few and very small.  The high tides have been dropping shells near the high tide mark on some beaches.

There are some shells and pieces of fossils on a few beaches now.  More than I've seen in quite a while.

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If you've dug many coins you've probably found some that were "holed" or "pierced."  Over the years I've found everything from holed pennies to holed reales.  Probably most common in my experience are holed wheat cents.

You might have noticed the holed large cent in yesterday's post.  I pointed out the hole in one of the large cents dug by GoldNugget.

Holed coins are thought to have served a variety of purposes.  For slaves, it is said that holed coins were worn on a cord around the neck and served as a type of wedding band.

Holed coins may also have been used as charms.  You've probably heard of lucky pennies.  Some people wear coins bearing their birth year or other important years.

Some holed coins are simply used as a nice shiny trinket or adornment.

One coin found by archaeologists was punched multiple times and may have been used as a button.

Coins bearing two holes, one on each side, may have been strung together as bracelets or necklaces.

It is also said that coins were sometimes pierced to be sewn into clothing to prevent loss.

The practice of piercing coins may have been replaced to some extent  by the practice of mounting coins in a bezel.

One study looked at hundreds of "holed" coins offered on eBay.  Most had one hole, were holded at the top of the obverse (side bearing the main design) as if holed for hanging, and the majority were from the mid 1800s.

I think this survey of auction coins is great, but on a site like eBay, you never know how many might be copies, fakes or simply misrepresented.  Still, I think this survey is a good start.

The title of that study is Pierced Coins: Insights From eBay, by William B. Lees and Monica L. Beck of the University of West Florida.

Here is the link.  http://uwf.edu/wlees/SEAC2007.pdf

Here is something interesting on the subject found at another web site.

Based on my study of old coins excavated in Virginia, on average about eight per cent of the older coins have holes. Almost all are holed near the rim. Coins holed at center are unusual to dig. I understand coins used in West African rituals to be holed at the center and buried at the corner of structures. The tradition served to help spirits who could recognize objects they possessed in life, to find their way back to visit their living relatives when taken away from familiar surroundings...

That came from the following linked site.

http://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v14n26a07.html

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Beach Near Low Tide Yesterday.

This particular beach has about twenty yards of flat sand out in the shallow water.  That sand came from the beach, which is now rather firm.  I chose to detect this beach rather than the steeper one with shells at the high tide mark.  This one had shells down near the water line.

We have a full moon tonight and will have another good high tide.  The surf will be increasing up to five feet in a couple of days, and the longer range prediction is for nine feet.  I can't get excited about the nine feet yet, because the long range predictions are not very accurate.

Nonetheless, it does look like we'll have some continued improvement in beach conditions.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

9/7/15 Report - Great Numismatic Study of Dug Pistareens. Tropical Storm Grace Headed This Way. Ring Beach Find.

Witten by the Treasure Guide for the exclusive use of TreasureBeachesReport.blogspot.com.

Found This Morning On A Treasure Coast Beach.

I went to the beach this morning.  Conditions had not changed at all.  I saw a couple of detectorists on the same beach.  One had done a good bit of the beach before I arrived.  The other arrived later.

People were arriving early for the Labor Day holiday.  There were a few distant showers and a little lightning and thunder.

When the holiday crowds are at the beach, they spread out a little farther than normal from the main gathering spots.

I had just switched from motion mode to non-motion mode, just to check it out, and hit the ring.  It sounded much larger.

I think it is a very good idea to be very familiar and practiced with all the modes that your detector offers.  There are times to use each one.

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Yesterday I posted Bernard Romans' statement about pistareens being found along the Treasure Coast beaches after Easterly gales.

The coins Romans referred to were not really pistareens.  Pistareens, as the term is more strictly defined, are Spanish coins minted in the old world. In the 1700s pistareens were commonly used in the American colonies along with a variety of other foreign coinage.  Of course, there was no U. S. currency yet.  It would be natural for Romans to refer to the Spanish cobs found on the beach as being pistareens, since they were commonly used in the colonies and had similar markings.

Pistareen 

Mint Marks.

1. Seville

2. Madrid

3..Segovia

4.Cuenca

I found a super study of dug pistareens recovered in the tobacco raising colonies of
America.  Pistareens found by both relic hunters and archaeolgists are included in the study.  Many of of those included in the study were found in Virginia.

This is definitely THE best study of a large sample of dug coins that I have ever seen.  The study was published in the April 2001 The Colonial Newsletter.  The title of the study is When Cross Pistareens Cut Their Way Through the Tobacco Colonies.  The author is Thomas A. Kays.  I posted the link below.

Here are some of the conclusions describing the typical dug pistareen.


It crossed the Atlantic westward as a 1721 dated pistareen minted by King Philip V at Seville.

The coin was used to make everyday purchases in Colonial America before the Revolution • 

It grades very fine having circulated actively for fifteen years and was saved for twenty five. • 

It was cut into quarters for frontier change at a tavern losing 25% by weight to the melting pot. • 

It would have gone to melt completely before the 19th Century had it not been casually lost. • 

It lay undisturbed (save for the pass of the plough) for over two centuries until it was dug up. 

The study includes many illustrations and a map showing where the pistareens were found and a lot of other really good information.  I think you'll want to read this.

Here is the link.

http://numismatics.org/wikiuploads/CNL/Pistareens.pdf

The mint marks shown to the left are from the same linked study.


I'll add this link to my list of reference links on the first page of the blog.


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t

Tropical Storm Grace.

Grace seems to be following about the same path as Erika.  She is still days away and supposed to decrease to a depression around the West Indies.  We'll just have to watch that one for a while.

The surf this morning was one to two feet.  It looked a little rougher than I expected, but won't change much the next few days.

Happy Labor Day,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

12/1/13 Report - Submersible Robot, Comparing and Contrasting Sandy and This November & Warners Safe Bottles

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

Turtle-Like Shipwreck Robot
Photo from article linked below.

The recently concluded blog poll was very informative.  It gave us a very good idea of how many people found cobs or treasure coins and allowed comparison with other periods when cobs or treasure coins were found.

I just added a new poll to the blog to find out what types of things were found.  Thanks for your participation, which will significantly add to the overall body of knowledge of beach detecting.

I've thought a little more about the comparisons between Sandy and Nov. 2013.   They were very similar in some ways and very different in others.

One striking similarity was that exactly the same number of people reported finding cobs or treasure coins for both Sandy and this November - 15 for each.  The number of respondents for the Sandy poll was only 90, while the sample size for November was 100.   That could make a little difference, but still about the same number of people reportedly found cobs or treasure coins.  (I had a three beach conditions rating on both as the highest predominant rating.)

The water during Sandy came up very high on the beach - back up over most of the flat beach and near or to the foot of the dunes.  This November, in contrast, the water never got near that far back.

During Sandy the erosion was farther back on the beach but the producing cuts were not as big.  I believe the cobs found during Sandy came from a greater number of beaches.

The number of cobs found during Sandy was pretty high considering the relative lack of erosion.

This November I believe fewer beaches produced, but those that did produce, produced greater concentrations.  And the cobs were more closely associated with cuts than during Sandy.

I've learned some things from that.   The beaches don't always show outstanding cuts when they are producing.  High water can do the job even when the beaches are not nicely cut.

It appears to me that high water conditions without big cutting produces cobs that are more spread over a larger area than the clusters that are produced near cuts when the cuts are bigger and closer to the front of the beach.  I'll be sure to observe and test those theories in the future.



Here is an article about a nice little submersible robot for studying shipwrecks.  (See photo above.)

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2515099/Meet-U-CAT-robotic-turtle-help-archaeologists-investigate-shipwrecks.html



If you dig bottles, here is one more little tip that will help determine how old your bottle is.  The tip comes from Kovels Komments.

A very rare Warner's Safe Diabetes Cure bottle from Pressburg (Bratislava, Slovakia) has sold on eBay for $8,735. It was made for only a few years, 1888 to 1890. (See Bottles and Extras magazine, November-December 2013). Warner's Safe Cure medicine bottles are popular with collectors, and there are dozens of variations. I have a few Warner's bottles and a large, very odd poster that shows a Warner's Safe Kidney and Liver Cure box and a mermaid on a buoy near a sinking ship. The words on the poster say, "We guarantee safety by taking the right channel." A common Warner's Safe Cure bottle sells for as little as $35 to $200. The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 required truth in labeling, and the word "cure" on bottles was replaced by "remedy." So "cure" bottles are over 100 years old.


I hope your Thanksgiving went well.  Only one more month to go this year.  Can you believe it?   It seems like just a few days ago I had to get used to writing 2013.


The wind has been blowing pretty good.  I'll have to get out to the beach soon to see what if anything is going on.


Today on the Treasure Coast we're supposed to have something like a 3 - 5 foot surf.  Yesterday it was a touch higher.  The surf is supposed to decrease steadily until next weekend until it is down around two feet.


Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net