3/8/20 Report - Higher Surf and Some Erosion On The Treasure Coast. A Few Finds Made. Charles and Joanna Coins.

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

Wabasso Saturday.

Erosion started on some of the beaches Saturday.  Some beaches were cut, others weren't.  

The access gate was closed at Seagrape.  That will be an obstacle for some, but for others it might be an opportunity.  Some reales were found there last month.

DJ sent the following photos taken Saturday at Turtle Trail.

Turtle Trail Saturday.

Turtle Trail Saturday.

Turtle Trail Saturday.

Turtle Trail Saturday.

A gold ring was found and another part of one.  They need to be cleaned and tested though.  

Here are a few other finds from Saturday.

Flat Button Found Saturday.

Back of Same Button After Light Cleaning With Detergent.

Sometimes all you need is a little light cleaning.  A little detergent and a toothbrush can help make a a button readable without much danger.  I just used a toothbrush and a little dish detergent on the above button.  You do have to be careful if there might be gilt which can be easily removed by accident though.

Encrusted Bullet.

Folded Lead Strip With Couple Holes.

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Peter H. who lives across the pond but reads this blog daily and sent in the following link to a Sedwick article about Charles and Joanna coins.

https://www.sedwickcoins.com/articles/carlosyjuana.pdf

Great article.

Thanks Peter.

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The surf is expected to be higher Sunday - 7 - 10 feet.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

3/7/20 Report - Could This Recent Find Be The Oldest Coin Ever Found On The Treasure Coast? Very Possibly!

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

Possibly Oldest Coin Ever Found On The Treasure Coast

Find and photo by Terry S.

I've been reporting and documenting Treasure Coast treasure hunting history, especially beach metal detecting, for several years now.  That wasn't my plan when I started this blog, but that is one thing that I've done.  As such, it has been my privilege to report many interesting finds and the stories of those who search the beaches.  Today I present the story of what is a possibly a record-breaking find made by Terry S.

Terry S. just made the find shown above and has been trying to figure out exactly what it is.  Below is what he said. 

  

 

Well folks I finally found a coin that is better than anything I have ever hoped for. This coin was probably lost on the treasure coast beaches 200 years before the 1715 Spanish Plate fleet disaster. This coin was around when Leonardo da Vinci was painting and his work was later to become so famous. It is what most including me  would say is the find of a lifetime.

When I found this coin at first I didn’t know for sure what it was, I thought it might be a Spanish reale because I could just make out what appeared to be the Spanish shield on one side. I called Jerry and together we thought it may be a reale but again we both were not sure. That evening Jerry called me and asked what it weighed. It was 6.5 grams and Jerry has a 4 reale that weighs 13 grams... making it a two reale.

I sent several pictures of the coin to a friend that is a real expert and he emailed me back saying that it looks as though it is an Old World coin minted in Spain and asked me to bring the coin over. Now it’s getting interesting and more than a little exciting.

Jean and I took the coin over and my friend spent a lot of time studying the coin and had several reference books as well as an article about some Spanish history dating to the mid 1550’s  that he brought up on his computer and asked me to read. I asked him if this coin would date before the 1715 coins being recovered, and he said before that. I then asked if he thought it may date to the 1600’s and again he said before that. At that point I knew I really had something good. A couple days ago I received an email from him saying  the coin appears to be a Carlos & Juana 1504 – 1516 silver coin. But I can’t say more until it’s cleaned.

   

I have had the coin soaking in distilled water, but last night my curiosity got the better of me and used the method where you cover the coin with saliva and wrap it in tin foil holding it until it gets warm then rub it with baking soda. It started to clean up but then I realized that I was being foolish and quit, this coin needs to be taken to an expert for cleaning and I shouldn’t be messing with it. This would be the front of the coin and it’s much more incrusted than the reverse...

It is going to be interesting to see if any coins this age or older have ever been found on Treasure Coast beaches... To a senior citizen with a metal detector this is exciting.

At the top of the post is the coin after Terry removed a little of the dirt.  Below are two more views from before any dirt removal.

Two Views of Same Coin Found by Terry S.

 I looked through one of my books and found a coin that looks similar.  The similar ones I found are Carlos and Juana coins minted in Mexico prior to 1516.

Isn't interesting that just the other day I listed a number of 16th century Treasure Coast shipwrecks and then this early coin is found.   Of course even if the coin is 16th century, that doesn't mean it was lost that early.  We don't know if it was or not.

I sent Terry the a copy of a page (shown below) from the book, Monedas Espanolas Desde Juana y Carlos a Isabel II 1504 a 1868, by Faran Calico, Xavier Calico y Joaquin Trigo, 6th edition, Barcelona, 1985.  That page seems to show coins very similar to the one found by Terry.

On the right side (top to bottom) of Terry's coin I think I could see part of what would be "Charolus."  And on the left (bottom to top) a bit of "IOHANA."  

The other side, I presume, would have large pillars in the center as shown on the coins in the book.

Quite a find!

Congratulations Terry!

I do recall seeing one very old maravedi that was found on the Treasure Coast, but unfortunately at this time don't recall its age.

Is this the oldest coin ever found on the Treasure Coast?  Let me know if you know of any older.

I'll look into it too.

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This has been a good winter for Treasure Coast treasure hunting.

The surf today will be 3 - 5 feet, increasing up to 7 - 11 feet Monday.

Happy hunting,

TreasureGuide@comcast.net

3/6/20 Report - Detectorist Finds Rare Artifact. Finds By Local Detectorist. Archaeologists VS Treasure Hunters. Bigger Surf Coming.

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

Source: See LincolnshireLive link below.

A metal detectorist has amazed experts after finding an incredibly rare Roman artifact in a Lincolnshire field.

Jason Price, from Grantham, was searching in a field near lesasingham when he unearthed a colourful horse brooch.

The 48-year-old, who is an armed forces veteran, was left gobsmacked by the find, which one local expert says has rewritten the understandings of Roman brooches.

The brooch, which is only the second of its kind to be found in the UK, was unearthed when Jason was on a 'Detecting for Veterans' weekend, and is set to go on displaylater this year...

Here is the link for more about that.

https://www.lincolnshirelive.co.uk/news/local-news/experts-amazed-after-incredibly-rare-3899808


It seems to me that in the past several years archaeologists have come to view detectorists less antagonistically - at least in the press.  Back then it seemed like detectorists were always called looters or something.  It seems a little better to me now.  I think it is at least partly because detectorists now have a voice such as this blog.

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Al C. sent me the following email and photos.


As always, thank you for the blog. I look forward to reading it every day.

When I saw the weather coming a couple weeks ago I tried to fire up my old Soverign and she finally gave up. I think I had that machine for almost 20 years. Made some great finds with it.

So I bought a Equinox. I have only used it once in a very trashy spot that had some construction going on and found the Mercury dime and Barber quarter. It was tough hunting. I plan to investigate the notch discrimination some and try more soon.

I also cant remember if I sent you a picture of the silver rings before. I found it years ago maybe a 100 yards north of where the stairs used to go up to Chucks Steak House. I also found two half reales at the same time/area.

I always wondered if it was ship wreck era. There are no markings on it. No way to tell I guess. I always think about it when the conversation of silver rings and the 1715 ships comes up.

Coins Found By Al C. In A Trashy Area Using His New Equinox.

Photo by Al C.

Intertwined Silver Rings Found by Al C.

Photo by Al C.

Thanks for writing Al.  Nice finds.  Congratulations.

I've found a few sets of intertwined rings but unfortunately at this time don't have the foggiest idea where.  They aren't marked either.  One set has one silver, one gold and one other ring.  None have markings.  I think I have one set that has more than three rings intertwined -  I think five.

Here is the one set I had handy.  They look much like yours.

I might be lucky enough to have some records that tell me when those were found.

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Brian B. sent me the following email and link.

Hello.. Still enjoy your great reads daily. Hope all is swell and glad to see you have a bit of free time as of late on the shores. Ran across a Jan good read as might be a dupe to you but if not, it's a good recap about the latest battles over treasure finds. Thanks Brian



Below is the lead to the article and the link.

A Shipwreck Off Florida’s Coast Pits Archaeologists Against Treasure Hunters

The discovery of a legendary wreck raises questions about who should control sunken riches

Here is the link.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/shipwreck-off-floridas-coast-pits-treasure-archaeologists-against-treasure-hunters-180974018/


Good article.   Thanks Brian.

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The surf today is supposed to be 0 - 1 foot, but Sunday it looks like  a 6 - 10 foot prediction.

Source: MagicSeaWeed.com

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

3/5/20 Report - Wreck and Artifacts of the Erebus. Squire Pope Manor Explored. Too Much Cleaning Spoils The Coin.

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

Four-Reale Cleaned By Electrolysis

Photo by JamminJack

JamminJack has provided photos of some nice coins that he cleaned with Muriatic Acid.  Here is a four-reale that he cleaned using electrolysis.

Jack said, "When we used to find clusters or heavily corroded reales, most of the time they were sold as is. Back then, an encrusted coin would bring a higher value with the mystery of possibly having a date, full shield, etc. Now it seems a cleaned coin is worth more!"

 "This 4 reale was heavily encrusted. The smooth areas are very thin. Possibly, a "razor" coin, but exstensive electrolysis and scrubbing the coin removed more surface then needed." 

Same Four-Reale Cleaned By Electrolysis

Thanks Jack for reminding us of the dangers of electrolysis when over done.

If you look at the Sedwick auctions, you'll see some coins that were sold as clumps and brought good prices.

Jack, like the author of this blog, prefers coins under-cleaned rather than overcleaned.

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Source: See CBC.CA News link below.

Here is a very nice article on the salvaging of the wreck of the Erebus complete with photos of recovered artifacts.

Here is a short excerpt from an article about the HMS Erebus.

Epaulettes that came from a lieutenant's uniform were found on the lower deck of Erebus in September 2019. The upper part of each epaulette is made of twisted, gold-plated silver wires over sheet metal. (Photo: Marni Wilson)

Items recovered included epaulettes from a lieutenant's uniform and ceramic dishes. The epaulettes, Bernier said, were found in a drawer filled with a lot of sediment but otherwise empty of artifacts, leaving the impression that they were abandoned.

"On the flip side, in the ship's pantry, there's barely any sediment, because the density of the objects is so big. You would have plates stacked up 13 high."

And here is the link if you want to read more about that.


https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/erebus-wreck-exploration-franklin-expedition-mystery-artifacts-1.5469843

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Local archaeologists believe they’ve uncovered remnants of the original Squire Pope manor at Wright Family Park, a discovery that would debunk a generations-old belief that all traces of the historic Bluffton structure were lost to time, erosion and the 1863 Union Army “Burning of Bluffton.”

Town officials say that last fall, Heyward House volunteers — representatives of the town’s historical preservation society — came upon very old bricks while metal-detecting on the Wright Family Park lawn at the end of Calhoun Street.

The breakthrough launched archaeological work on the property...

Here is the link for more about that.

https://www.blufftontoday.com/news/20200228/archaeologists-find-remnants-of-what-could-be-squire-pope-manor-in-bluffton

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Source: MagicSeaWeed.com

It looks like the surf will be higher this weekend.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

3/4/20 Report - Ornate Roman Sword In Sheath Found. Other Miscellaneous Finds. Bigger Surf Coming.

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

200-Year-Old Roman Dagger in Sheath.

Source: See LiveScience.com link below

I posted about this Roman sword on 3/3, but it looks like somehow it accidentally got deleted so I'm posting it again.

Here are the first few paragraphs.

Archaeologists in Germany were "lost for words" after the discovery of a 2,000-year-old silver dagger. The weapon was found in its sheath in the grave of a Roman soldier who once fought against the Germanic tribes.

The dagger was so corroded, it took nine months of sandblasting and grinding before the sharp, 13-inch-long (35 centimeters) weapon was restored, at which point researchers were easily able to remove it from its richly decorated sheath...

After the dagger was X-rayed, CT scanned, and restored, archaeologists marveled at the dagger; its handle is inlaid with silver and decorated with rivets, and the iron blade has "deep grooves on either side of the midrib, a pronounced waist and a long tapering point," Tremmel said.

The iron sheath is lined with linden wood and decorated with red glass, silver, niello (a black mixture, often of sulphur, copper, silver and lead) and red shiny enamel. Rings on the sheath were used to hang the dagger from a belt, which was also found in the grave...

Clipping From Video Showing Cleaned and Restored Sword on Belt.

Source: See LiveScience.com link below.

Here is the link.

https://www.livescience.com/roman-iron-dagger-sheath.html

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I've often said, "There is always somewhere to hunt and something to find."  When conditions aren't right for one kind of hunting, it is for another.  You just have to change and adapt to the prevailing conditions.

I also believe that doing different kinds of hunting is both fun and educational.   You'll often learn something from one kind of hunting that you can then use when doing another type of hunting.

Yesterday I didn't go metal detecting, but I did do a little bottle hunting, and came away with a few nice bottles but nothing really special.   Here are a couple.

Vintage Coca Cola Bottle and Unidentified Stopper Top Bottle Finds.

The Coca Cola bottle is in very nice clean condition.   As you probably know, Coca Cola collectibles are among the most collected, right up there with Disney. 

This bottle is from Claxton Ga.  It is not an old or rare bottle, but I assume it would be extremely common either.

Bottom of Claxton GA Coca Cola Bottle.

Yesterday I also posted some finds by DB.  Here they are again.

Shell Artifacts, Fowler's Ink Bottle, Lea and Perrine Bottle, Bottle Stoppers, etc.

Finds and photo by DB.

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The predictions for a higher surf this weekend are holding up well.   I think they improved their mode.  In the past the predictions would often predict a high surf that would disappear as the time got closer.  Now the predictions seem to hold up very well.

Source: MagicSeaWeed.com.

Happy hunting,
Treasureguide@comcast.net

3/2/20 Report - Researching Bead Finds For Age and Origin. Other Shipwrecks Along the Treasure Coast.

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

Beads Found Along With Small Metallic Objects A Little Over A Week Ago.

I previously posted a variety of miscellaneous small metallic finds, including a few pieces of melted silver.  These beads were found the same day as some of those finds and in the same general vicinity.  I've been researching beads to see if I can find any evidence of their age.

I've found a lot of information about beads of the Spanish Colonial period as well as earlier and later periods.

Manifests show many beads, sometimes hundreds of thousands per shipment, being imported to the New World by the Spanish for a variety of purposes.  Deagan's book, Artifacts of the Spanish Colonies of Florida and the Caribbean, 1500 - 1600: Vol. 2, Portable Personal Possessions, shows that most of those beads were glass, but others were jet, aquamarine, pearls, wood, crystal, coral or amber, and some of silver.  Clay or terracotta was not mentioned in those listings.

It appears to me that these beads are clay or terracotta.

End of Bead Showing Clay Composition.

If I knew this bead was centuries old, the condition would make me think that it came from the dunes.
The other small items that I discussed yesterday seem like they could also be from recent dune erosion.

I once found a small gold bead on the same wreck beach.  I've told about that before. It wasn't easy to find after it was detected by the metal detector.  I had it along with some shell sand on my detector coil and could hear when it was moved, but still had a hard time seeing it.

In the process of trying to find evidence of the likely age of this bead, I found some good information and resources even if I didn't find any positive answers.

Below is a link to The History of Trade Beads on the Peach State Archaeological Society web site.

https://peachstatearchaeologicalsociety.org/index.php/13-beads/248-history-of-trade-beads

Here is the introductory paragraph.

October 12, 1492, Columbus recorded in his logbook the natives of San Salvador Island were given red caps and glass beads. This is the earliest written record of glass beads in the Americas. The Spanish explorer Hernando Cortéz landed on the coast of Mexico in the spring of 1519. His ships carried glass beads along with other European trade goods. The Spanish explorers Narváez in 1527 and De Soto in 1539 carried glass beads for trade with the native inhabitants of Florida.

Glass beads were by far the most common.  You will find a few from the Atocha listed in the MelFisher artifact database.

Here is detailed academic study of 16th century beads in South America.

https://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/handle/1/33813391/FEINZIG-DOCUMENT-2017.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

Among the beads of the native populations, stone and shell were common materials.

I thought that clay or terracotta beads would be among the most common, but that does not seem to be the case.  Many of the materials used to create beads have a symbolic significance, which is one reason that materials that are more difficult to work and form might be used more often than easily workable clay.

At this point I can't say if the beads are old or not.  I'm still looking for evidence that might point one way or the other.

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On the Treasure Coast the 1715 Fleet wrecks get the most attention, however there are many other wrecks, both known and unknown, along the Treasure Coast.

A quick survey of Shipwrecks In The Americas by Robert E. Marx, shows the following 16th century wrecks listed as wrecking near Fort Pierce.

1551. Nao San Nicolas, 200 tons, Captain Juan Christoval, was wrecked near Fort Pierce and the Indians recovered a great deal of what it carried....

1554. The ship of Farfan (probably its owner) sand near Fort Pierce, richly laden with gold and silver...

1564.  A Spanish historian briefly mentions the los of three ships of Don Juan Menendez on the Florida coast near Fort Pierce.

Sometime before 1570.  The ship Vizcayo, on which Don Anton Grandado was a passenger, wrecked richly laden near Fort Pierce inlet...

Sometime before 1570.  A Spanish privateer, El Mulato, wrecked, richly laden, near Fort Pierce….

That is only a small sample of the 16th century wrecks of Florida.  There are many other 16th century wrecks listed simply as wrecking along the coast of Florida, or near Cape Canaveral or in the Bahama channel.  In addition, there are many more wrecks from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries.

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The price of gold seems to be making a comeback this morning after falling last week.

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The surf predictions are beginning to look more encouraging for next weekend.

Source: MagicSeaWeed.com

Happy hunting,
Treasureguide@comcast.net

3/1/20 Report - Acid Cleaning and Electrolysis. Silver Nuggets and Other Small Finds. Mystery Object.

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

Two Eight-Reales RECLEANED by Jammin Jack

Photos by Jammin Jack.

If you are wondering if it is better to use electrolysis or muriatic acid to clean your old silver finds, you might consider what Jammin Jack concluded.

I previously showed some eight-reale coins that Jack cleaned with Muriatic acid.   He then decided to go back and reclean some coins that were previously cleaned by electrolysis.

Here is how he put it.


I recleaned a few coins that I were done with electrolysis process.

I usually do not like cleaning patina, but this group were heavily corroded. The coins came out better and with more visible detail. 

I cannot go back in time, but regret choosing electrolysis over bathing with a diluted muriatic solution. 

Above and below are the tree coins that he recleaned.

Third Coin RECLEANED by Jammin Jack.

Thanks for sharing Jack.
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Bits of Silver Found On A Treasure Coast Beach Last Week.

These bits of silver look like they were melted.  I cleaned them up before having them tested, and they are a high purity of silver.  They were found in a relatively small area of a few yard or two.

I cleaned them using acid, baking soda paste in aluminum foil, and then buffed them.

The small silver pieces were just a few of numerous small objects found in January and February on days when the beach was producing cobs.

Here are some of the other small bits found the same day in February when I found the silver bits.  They include lead, copper, and maybe brass or bronze.

Group of Various Small Metal Pieces Found On A Treasure Coast Beach Last Week.

I previously posted the following similar group of small items found back in January near the same location.

Previously Posted Group of Small Finds From January Hunt.

I found no silver bits on that day in January, other than a four reales and three half reales, but no small melted silver pieces like those shown at the top of the post.

If you read Douglas R. Armstrong's The Winter Beach Salvage Camp, you'll see that lead scrap and copper are perhaps the most commonly found metals from the test pits, but also reported from multiple pits are small pieces of scrap silver.  The small bits and pieces found in the past two months seem to closely mirror the finds from Armstrong's salvage camp explorations.

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John Ellmore found the following item and wondered what it is.  Any ideas would be appreciated.

Mystery Object Found by John E.

Photo by John E.

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The surf is around two feet and the tides are small.

Sourec: MagicSeaWeed.com

It looks like an increase in the surf is expected for next weekend.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net