1/31/20 Report - Treasure Coast Beaches Generally Deteriorating. Mystery Find and Knives and Swords.

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

Vero South Beach Friday Morning.

I went out to check some beaches this morning.  My primary interest was in Rio Mar, which I hadn't checked for a while, and I wanted to see what the high surf had done there, but when I got there I found the Rio Mar access closed for a renourishment project.  I went down to Vero South Beach, and it looked like tons of new sand had been dumped there (See above photo.).

I don't know why they think people love sand so much.  I thought it was ugly.  It wasn't the best sand either.

When I went by Pepper Park I stopped to check it out too.  I had not been there for quite a while.

Pepper Park Friday Morning.

Pepper Park didn't look good either.

I stopped at Turtle Tail on my way north.  It didn't look much different than the last time I was there when the cuts had disappeared.   I talked to a couple fellows, who weren't getting any signals.

Wabasso Beach Friday Morning.

If you notice the white sand they piled on the banks, it starts up at the park but is also in front of the Disney Resort.  Did the tax payers pay for that sand in front of Disney?  I suspect they did.

Ambersands Friday Morning.

Like the other beaches I saw this morning, Ambersands beach had deteriorated since last week.

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Yesterday I posted a mystery item from Bob C.  Bob sent the item on a grid so we could get the size.

Mystery Item on Grid.

Photo by Craig C.

The item is about 2.5 inches long and one inch wide.  The hole appears to be a touch less than a quarter inch across.  It is said to be brass with engraving.

Bob said, "A couple people I have talked to suggested possibly off of a dagger or sword scabbard. One said there may have been a different metal "medallion" where the hole is."  

I thought it might be interesting to look at the possibility that it has something to do with a dagger or sword.  A scabbard is a sheath, so I don't think that is it.

Below is an illustration from an old Dixie Gun Works catalog showing knife handle assemblies of different kinds.

I couldn't get the left edge of the illustration in the scan, but I think it is good enough to do the job.  Notice that there are both square and round tangs.  The tang goes through the guard and into the handle.   So could the object be a guard.

Below is a picture of a bowie knife guard.  The squares are one inch, so the guard is about five inches long, a little over an inch wide, but, here is something to consider, is almost a half inch thick.

Is the mystery item sturdy enough to be a knife or sword guard.  It does not look like it to me.

Below is a picture of a couple swords.  The guard on the smallest one is still around six inches across.

Of course there are a a lot of different types of knives and swords.   At this point I'm not convinced the mystery object has anything to do with bladed weapons right now, but I'm not quite ready to totally exclude the possibility.   There are a lot of possibilities.  I might consider some others in the near future.  In the mean time, I hope you'll send your thoughts and opinions.

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I need to do some more cleaning and research on some of my finds.

It looks like the surf will be decreasing.

Source: MagicSeaWeed.com.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

1/30/20 Report - A Few Beaches and Some Finds Reported. One Find for ID.

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

John Brooks Thursday About Three PM.

I was traveling the past couple days and hadn't seen the beaches for a few days.  Since the last time I was at John Brooks it hadn't changed much, but might have built up a little more.

Fort Piece South Jetty Thursday Afternoon.

When you look at Fort Pierce South Jetty beach, it is hard to not notice how much sand has left the area in the recent past.  So where did it go?

Fort Pierce South Jetty Beach Thursday Afternoon.

Obviously it has been pulled out into the water.  The littoral currents would take it south.  I'm sure it won't be long until the fill it back in with new sand.

I don't know exactly how many times they've renourished this beach in the past few years, but it has been a number of times, and each time it erodes quickly again.  All of that sand ends up in the water, and gets carried south over time.  There are times when it partially refills naturally, but I'm sure that sand goes out and south.  You will see it piling up in front of the condominiums and farther south than that.  Those beaches to the south are very wide now, especially compared to back years and decades ago.

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Bob C. sent the following email and photos.

Hi, I've been reading here for a long time, and appreciate the blog. I found an item I'm hoping you may be able to give me some input on.  I found them tuesday in a pretty decent cut, at the southern border of a wreck. I found a lot of scrap copper and brass, the brass plate I'm hoping you can help identify, has fine, hand engraving on it. The round hole has me scratching my head. I found a small brass square nail/spike 1' from it.  A couple people I have talked to suggested possibly off of a dagger or sword scabbard. One said there may have been a different metal "medallion" where the hole is. About 25' from these, I also found a reale, and a piece of what looks like a brass chain link. Any help and wisdom would be greatly appreciated!

I'm going to post his finds now so you can see what you think.  I also asked him for measurements on the one item and should be able to give you the measurements before long.

Finds and Photos by Bob C.

The miscellaneous small finds are very similar to those I found a few days ago.

Below is the main item of interest.

Mystery Item for ID.

Photo by Bob C.

Another View of the Same Item.

I'm not sure if I see the engraving.  Maybe something to the left hole and up a little.  Looks like maybe a circle and number.

I asked Bob for measurements.  Maybe he can also be more descriptive about the engraving and what it looks like.

I'll let you think about that one for a while and post the other information as I get it.

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After tumbling some of my small found bits to get through the surface corrosion so I could do a decent test, I found some that seem to be small melted silver bits.  Maybe I can get some decent photos of those and some other things.

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The surf was small today and the tides weren't big either, but tomorrow we're supposed to have a bump in the surf.

Source: MagicSeaWeed.com

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net








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1/29/20 Report - Spikes Found. Diving Neanderthals. Columbus and Caribs. Searchable Database.

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

Spikes Found Early Last Week.

Here are some spikes I found last week.

Shipwreck spikes?   Nope.

They are railroad spikes.s

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Neanderthals went diving for shells to turn into tools, according to new research, suggesting our big-browed cousins made more use of the sea than previously thought.

The study focuses on 171 shell tools that were found in a now inaccessible coastal cave in central Italy, known as the Grotta dei Moscerini, which was excavated in 1949. Dating of animal teeth found within layers alongside the shell tools suggest they are from about 90,000 to 100,000 years ago – a time when only Neanderthals are thought to have been present in western Europe.

The tools had previously been thought to have been formed from shells collected by Neanderthals from the beach where they had been tossed by waves. But now experts have peered at the shell tools through microscopes, revealing many do not show the wear and tear that would be expected from such a fate, such as the presence of barnacles or marks on the shells...

Here is the link for more of that article.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/jan/15/neanderthals-dived-for-shells-to-make-tools-research-suggests

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Christopher Columbus’ accounts of the Caribbean include harrowing descriptions of fierce raiders who abducted women and cannibalized men – stories long dismissed as myths.

But a new study suggests Columbus may have been telling the truth.

Using the equivalent of facial recognition technology, researchers analyzed the skulls of early Caribbean inhabitants, uncovering relationships between people groups and upending longstanding hypotheses about how the islands were first colonized.

One surprising finding was that the Caribs, marauders from South America and rumored cannibals, invaded Jamaica, Hispaniola and the Bahamas, overturning half a century of assumptions that they never made it farther north than Guadeloupe.

“I’ve spent years trying to prove Columbus wrong when he was right: There were Caribs in the northern Caribbean when he arrived,” said William Keagan, Florida Museum of Natural History curator of Caribbean archaeology.  “We’re going to have to reinterpret everything we thought we knew.”

Here is the link for more about that.

https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/science/carib-skulls-boost-credibility-of-columbus-cannibal-claims/

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I started talking about Kang Hsi porcelain and other pottery and then got off on some other things, but you might find the following web site helpful if you pick up shards.

It is the Florida Museum of Natural History pottery database.

https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/flarch/blog/new-searchable-guide-to-florida-pottery/

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I thought that blog Followers might get notice of new posts, but someone said he didn't think so. 

I have some topics that I need to address, but they'll have to wait until some other time because they are fairly complex and it will take me a while to get them put together.

For now,
Happy hunting,
Treasureguide@comcast.net

1/27/20 Report - Overall Beach Conditions Deteriorating Around the Treasure Coast.

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

Pile of New Sand on John Brooks Beach Near Low Tide on 1/27

I took a look at John Brooks This morning near low tide and found a big pile of new sand on the beach front.  That is what I expected, having earelier looked at a beach cam that showed some slow small swells coming onto the beach.  If you are a shell hunter, you might enjoy it even though John Brooks doesn't seem to have any real interesting shells.

I was remembering this morning a time years ago when you could find pot holes right in front of the beach.  Now it is very sandy.

It will take more than the small swells we are predicted to have to move much of this newly accumulated sand.

DJ sent photos of some of the other South Hutchinson Island beaches.  I think they are from this morning.

Frederick Douglass Beach

Photo by DJ

Frederick Douglass Beach

Photo by DJ

Middle Cove

Photo by DJ

Middle Cove

Photo by DJ

Fort Pierce South Jetty

Photo by DJ

Up in the Vero area, here is what Turtle Trail looked like around noon this morning.

Turtle Trail 1/27

Turtle Trail 1/27

Turtle Trail 1/27

At Turtle Trail the cuts were gone and just a bit of a few bags were showing.  Just a slight bit of scalloping.

My Treasure Coast Treasure Beach Metal Detecting Rating is now a 1.  As I've explained in the past, my lowest beach conditions rating is a 1, not a zero, because there is always a chance.  The productive areas become fewer and smaller when overall conditions are not good, but you may still be able to find some small isolated areas created by local conditions.  One thing you might consider if you have a lot of time to spend is doing some scouting for those kinds of places.  I discussed that type of thing several times in the past.  Remember, when the sand is building in one place, it is leaving another.

I don't expect much improvement in beach conditions in the next few days.

Source: MagicSeaWeed.com

Happy hunting,

TreasureGuide@comcast.net

  

1/26/20 Report - Still Looking At Treasure Coast Beach Finds Including Cobs and Things.

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

Uncleaned Four Reale Found Last Wednesday.

A day or two ago I showed a picture of the above four-reale which was found last week.  This is the other side of it.

I wanted to take a photo before I starting cleaning it.  I can't believe I waited so long before starting the cleaning, but I've had plenty to keep me busy.

After one hour in a diluted Muriatic solution, I could see the denomination mark emerging.

Details Emerging After Hour in Diluted Muriatic Solution.

The "4" is just to the right of the edge of the shield.  I think you'll be able to see it.

This one might be Charles II era (1665 - 1700)?  That's my guess now, but I'm not sure yet.  What do you think?

I also got a close-up photo of the half-reale I showed the other day.  Here is a closer look at that one.

One Gram Half Reale Found Last Week.

The little tail is interesting.  Does it remind you of anything?  Remember the Potosi "heart" reales?

Rare Potosi Heart Reales.

Very interesting heart reales were produced at Potosi, and they have a very similar little tail.

If you look at the top of the newly found half reale you might be able to see that it looks like maybe the top part was chipped off.  And if you stand that half reale so that the tail is at the very bottom, the cross is unusually well centered and oriented.  Most likely all of that is coincidence, but I sure would have liked to know what the top originally looked like.

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Yesterday I showed a variety of small items found on the Treasure Coast in recent months.  That included the little piece found by Captain Jonah.  Mark Myer sent me a photo that he sent me back in September of September of 2017 that shows a very similar small find along with a hinge.  Below is that photo from Mark. 

2017 Finds by Mark M.

Part of what I've been doing in this blog, without really starting out with that intention, is documenting and cataloging Treasure Coast beach finds.

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One thing I should have mentioned about the group of small items that I showed yesterday, is that there is a mixture of old and new items that were found in the same area on the same day.   While a small half reale was found with other old small items, there was also some obviously newer items.  One appears to be an electrical connector.  That goes along with the series I started not long ago on how difficult it can be too determine the age of finds and how context can be misleading when you are talking about beach finds.  Just because an item is found with older items does not mean it is also old.  It improves the chances some, but it doesn't guarantee anything.

Here is one way, and I'd say one of the most prevalent ways, that older and newer items get mixed together.

In the back dunes there are layers of material with older items buried deeper and under newer items. So when the dune erodes, it erodes from the bottom, and a vertical slab falls to the base of the cliff and the items are then redistributed by whatever waves might still be hitting the base of the cliff.  Depending upon various factors, those items will be redistributed over a small or large area.   If that area is relatively small, there won't be much sorting or classifying happening.

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I haven't received any beach photos the last couple of days and might have some for you tomorrow.  We have been getting some ENE swells and decent, but not large, surf.

Let me know if you have and ideas on these objects or any corrections.

Happy hunting,
Treasureguide@comcast.net

1/25/20 Report - Looking At Some of the Small Finds of The Week and Previous Months.

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

Miscellaneous Small Finds From Earlier This Week.

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I posted this picture yesterday but promised to take a closer look at some of the objects.  I was glad I did.  

If you've been paying close attention and keeping track, you know that we've had some beach condition upgrades in November, December and January.  The latest being this week.  Each of those upgrades were similar in some respects, and when considered together provide some good clues.

Everybody seems to like the beach photos, but you'll get even more value out of them if you keep track of them over time and consider them in context of whatever else is going on.  

I showed one group of small finds I made yesterday.  Previously I also showed some of the small finds made in November and December.  There are some similar items, and many of them came from the same area of the same beach.

Captain Jonah found this nice little piece back in November.

And here are a couple small finds I previously showed.  One of those small tacks was found in November and the other in December.  I think you'll find them in my 12/20/19 post.

Two Small Tack Finds in Recent Months.

I'd be glad to receive any and all ideas about what these small tacks might have been used for.

The following small pieces were also found in the same area back in December, if I correctly recall.

I wondered about them when they were found.  Now it seems they might be part of a grouping, possibly coming from the same source as some of those found this week.  I'm interested in the possible source, if and how they might be related, and if they might be used as a clue or signal.

Below is one of the items found this week.  You can also see it in the picture at the top of the post.

Small Square Nail.

This is a common type of nail found on a number of the Treasure Coast shipwreck beaches.   

Below is another item found this week at the same location.

Item Found This Week.

I thought this one was a screw until I looked at it under magnification and found it had no threads and a blunt end.  Maybe a rivet?  It has the same patina as the nail shown above, but the shank is more round than square.  It seems to be of the same material as the nail.

Small Piece of Metal That Originally Had a Square Connector in the Hole.

When I picked up the item above it was covered with sand, and I thought it could be a reale. The little square on the right side of the dime is the head of a small square connector that was in the hole until it fell out after some handling.  In this photo it looks like rusted material, but it does not look rusted when viewed normally.  I'm going to have to spring for an XRF analyzer someday.   I think this item is probably more modern, but don't know for sure.

Below is a piece found in November or December.  It seems to be of the same material as the piece found this week, which you can see top and center beside the knife point in the photo at the top of this post.

Cuprous Object Found in November or December.

I've been looking at this one and trying to make out the marks.  It does appear to have a worked edge.  It seems to have a flat uniform rim that is about a half inch across.   I think it is cuprous, but not the same alloy as the nail.  If the item is a piece of a larger object, which I believe it is, and the circumference is similar to the worked edge on this piece, the entire object would be something like 3.5 inches in diameter.

Below are pictures of  the outside edge (top) and inner, apparently broken inner edge I(bottom).

Two Edges of Cuprous Object.

This is another one that when I first saw it in the sand I thought might be a cob.  I think it is a cuprous, but not the same alloy as the nail and rivet.

I found what could possibly be another piece of the same object on Wednesday.   Here it is.

A Slightly Larger Broken Cuprous Piece.

This one seems to be made of the same material, although the lighting and amount of crust obscures that fact.  Unlike the other piece, all the edges of this one are broken.  It could be an inner piece of the same object the other piece came from.  I don't know if it is a piece of the same thing or not, but that is something I'll consider as a possibility and watch for any more matching pieces.

The items I discussed today may not be very interesting, and they are certainly not valuable, but to me they are interesting.  I am pretty sure they provide some helpful clues.  Time will tell how useful those clues will be.  They definitely helped me learn more about the metal detector I was using.  

It is like you have some puzzle pieces and don't know how many belong to the same puzzle.   It is still fun to see how much you can put together.  

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I'll try to get around to cleaning some cobs soon.

The surf will be a little smaller tomorrow and for the next few days.

The primary swell will be ENE.

Happy hunting,

TreasureGuide@comcast.net

1/24/20 Report - A Couple Reales and Some Other Finds. Treasure Coast Beaches and Beach Developments.

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

Four-Reale Found Wednesday.

The four-reale I showed yesterday needs some cleaning.  Much of the detail is obscured by a corrosion and crust.  Even the parts that look clean are not.  It took me a while to get the lighting so I could show some of the details.  In the photo above, you can see that the reale has the Florenza cross and was minted in Mexico.

Zooming in more, you can see that most of the surface, even the parts that look clean, is covered by crud (to use a technical term) and corrosion.

Close-up of Surface of Same Four Reale.

I think it will show more detail when it is cleaned some.

That four-reale was the first good target I dug Wednesday.  I dug a lot of small stuff that day too.

On the Equinox, using the factory preset settings, but in beach mode 1, the four-reale gave a coin tone, and the number I think was 26, or maybe 30.

I was very pleased that all the cobs I dug, whether it was the chunky 13 gram four-reale shown above or the small one gram half-reale that I dug a little later, resulted in what I'll call the coin tone, and none of the other stuff that I dug that day gave the coin tone.  If cobs are consistently identified as coins, that could be very handy at times.

I have not done a direct comparison under the same conditions, but suspect that the ATX might still be my choice to make sure I don't miss anything deeper.  With the ATX you can spend a lot of time digging very deep holes and trying to find very small nearly invisible targets.  I like the Equinox for doing quick general purpose scans, but might in some circumstances do a final check with the ATX.  I didn't have time to recheck with the ATX Wednesday.   Search strategies can get complex.  I'll have to do more posts on that someday.

Below is a pretty representative sample of the other miscellaneous small stuff I dug Wednesday in the same general area where I dug the four-reale.  I should have put a dime or something in for size comparison.  I'll look at some of these items more closely some other day.

Some Miscellaneous Small Stuff Dug Wednesday In The Same Area As Cobs.

I think a few of those are probably shipwreck related, but some are definitely modern junk, and I'm not sure about quite a few.  What I am pleased with is the equinox correctly identifying cobs with a coin tone while not giving a coin sound for any of these other various types of items.

Here is a quick look at another cob found Wednesday.  This one is the smallest cob I found that day, weighing just around 1 gram.  Again, it gave a coin tone just like the 13 gram four reale.

Half-Reale Found Wednesday.

The surface of this one is corroded almost exactly like the four-reale shown above.  I took close-up photos of the surface of both, but since the close-ups look so much alike I won't bother to show both.  They both have the same kind of grains attached and show the same kind of corrosion.

So what I'm going to do next is some cleaning on these and a couple more corroded cobs and take a closer look at some of the smaller miscellaneous finds.

DJ sent in the following photo showing the erosion control bags at Turtle Trail covered yesterday.

Turtle Trail 1/24

He also said, Went by Golden Sands where a sign said trucks entering and leaving, caution.
Two guys in orange vests were at the entrance... 

And,  Treasure Shores, strangely, had a photo shoot with about twenty vehicles and about 50 people milling around. 

Thanks DJ.

I think I showed a photo I took from there earlier in the day when the bags were just a bit more exposed.  That shows how the sand was accumulating at that spot during the day.

John Brooks Beach 1/24.

I took the John Brooks and Frederick Douglass photos just an hour or two ago.  I guess if you want to get the photos as soon as possible, it might help to Follow the blog.  Since I'm not peddling books or promoting anything, I don't know much about that, but I believe you get a notice when there is a new post if you are a blog follower.  I'm sure someone will correct that if I'm wrong.

John Brooks Near Low Tide 1/24.  

Some Detectorists Shooting the Breeze at Frederick Douglass 1/24

Frederick Douglass Near Low Tide 1/24

Frederick Douglass Near Low Tide 1/24

Of course beaches change continually.  Everybody knows that.  It is something like the stock market: there are minute by minute changes, daily changes and year over year changes.  A beach will continually change, but it helps if you know where it was recently as well as in the more distant past.  You can project some of the changes and develop some reasonable expectations if you know where the beach has been in recent days and what is going on that will affect the beach, which is the reason for the surf reports etc.  That is a big topic that will take a lot of posts.

The surf today was five to seven feet, dropping down to something like four or five feet tomorrow.  The decreasing surf can will give you access to spots you couldn't easily detect before.  There was a lot of open beach at low tide today.

Happy hunting,
Treasureguide@comcast.net