Treasure Coast Beach Metal Detector Find by Mike H. in 2009.Mike, who submitted the photo said, "...included is a picture of a very small flint model pocket pistol, the rivets are still visible. I found this near turtle crossing north of Vero Beach."
That is an interesting find. Mike coated the pistol with Rust-oleum Clear Coat to preserve it and that accounts for the shiny appearance in the photo.
That is one interesting find. Congratulations Mike!
Yesterday I posted pictures of stylized Charles and Philip monograms as they would appear on half reales form the 1715 Fleet.
The design for many half reales of the period included a date. Due to the small size and irregular shape of half reales, the date is often not found. There are other clues help you narrow down the date though.
On the Charles II Mexican half reales, if you can see anything to the left of the monogram, you might see the mint mark and assayers initial, which would be an O over an M over a G. The OM is the mint mark (Mexico) and the G is the assayer's initial.
Mexican Charles II Half Reale Found on 1715 Fleet Beach.On this example, I think you can see most of the assayer's initial (G) to the left of the monogram. And perhaps the "R" inside the "C" of the monogram. From the examples I've seen, the left side of the "A" in the monogram is more slanted than what you see on the Lima and Potosi minted half reales, which would also have the last three digits of the year directly under the Charles monogram.
On the Charles II half reale that I showed yesterday you couldn't see to the left of the monogram and therefore couldn't see any of the mint mark or assayer's initial.
Anyone who studies cobs knows that it is a vast field. There are so many variations and minor details that can be significant.
For example, one thing that will help you distinguish between Lima and Potosi half reales is that on the Lima Charles II half reales the circle around the monogram is composed of more circular or round dots while those on the Potosi half reale of the same period is composed of more comma-shaped dots.
I like to learn what I can about dug cobs, but it is really a bit overwhelming.
A nine-year-old stopped his grandfather from throwing away a Neolithic axhead. The grandfather was throwing stones for the dog when the boy recognized the flint tool.
Here is the link to that story.
http://www.thisistotalessex.co.uk/news/Scout-s-honour-Neolithic-discovery/article-3115412-detail/article.html
I'm sure that a lot of you have discarded very nice finds. I've done it myself. That is why I say to keep anything that might be questionable until you get a positive identification.
Forecast and Conditions.
The low tide this morning was lower than usual. I was able to search out further than usual but still couldn't dig up that one object I've been working on.
Although conditions are still poor for finding shipwreck coins, the low tide area might turn up some artifacts. I dug some iron objects that were obviously old, but encrusted and unidentifiable.
One area that was cut very nicely a couple of weeks ago and yielded a number of gold items as well as coins was cutting again, but was not back down to the productive layers yet. That could happen if the same area keeps eroding.
There are a lot of scalloped areas out there, but they are so high on the beach and in such sandy areas that I don't think you'll find them very productive.
Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net
