3/14/19 Report - Great Coin Collection Dug Up. Kang Hsi Porcelain. Surf Worth Watching.

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

Source: CoinWorld (See link below.)

An eight-coin 1876 Proof set containing silver and minor coinage, buried by its owner in the backyard of his Chicago home more than two decades ago, was brought for authentication and grading April 27 to the Central States Numismatic Society convention in Schaumburg, Illinois, by the late owner’s son...

The unusual story has a tragic element. The late collector, who died in 1994 at age 84, suffered with Alzheimer’s disease the last five years of his life, according to his son. The son said there’s a possibility that his father may have buried his entire extensive collection of United States coins. The coins, which have been off the market for more than 50 years, were primarily silver and gold issues...

The son said he has purchased a metal detector to help better pinpoint where else on his father’s property other coins may have been buried.

The son said his father told him some time before his death that, if something happened to him, to be sure to look under the home’s front porch. After his father passed, the son said, he did just that, and discovered three metal coffee cans housing Morgan silver dollars that were also wrapped in plastic bags. Although he has never executed a complete inventory of his discoveries to date, he said there are examples of Morgan dollars from the Philadelphia, Denver, San Francisco, New Orleans and Carson City Mints...

Here is the link.

https://www.coinworld.com/news/us-coins/2018/05/family-finds-1876-proof-set-buried-in-yard.all.html


When I post stories like this, there is always something to learn from it. These kinds of stories generally tell you where things were discovered and how. That is something to remember for your own hunts.

It seems it is not highly unusual to bury valuables in the back yard or under a porch.

I've seen some porches that I'd love to get under, especially at commercial locations where there have been millions of people and there are spaces for things to fall into.

I still remember the first time I detected under a walkover at Hollywood beach and found a good bunch of coins.  It was exciting.  I hadn't been detecting very long at the time.

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Not all treasure is made of silver or gold.  There are treasures that are not even metal.  One thing you can find on the Treasure Coast is fine Chinese porcelain that was being carried on the 1715 Fleet.  I've mentioned it before and you are probably aware of Kang Hsi or Kangxi (spelled various ways) porcelain.  On the beach you will usually find only a small piece but there are cases when intact cups, plates or other porcelain items have been found.  Those can be quite valuable.  The small pieces are often mounted in silver or gold jewelry.  The Kang Hsi item shown immediately below is offered by Sothebys is offered with an estimated price of 6 to 8000 dollars.

Source: http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2019/kangxi-the-jie-rui-tang-collection-part-ii-n10031/lot.301.html

Unless you have studied, it can be difficult to identify Kang Hsi porcelain from a lot of other pottery.  Kang Hsi is often blue and white, and that is also a common color of a lot of old but less valuable pottery.  I've done posts on how to tell the difference.

See https://treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com/2013/12/122913-report-1715-fleet-kang-hsi.html

In the past I've also posted photos of pieces that were found on the Treasure Coast.

Here is a link to a Sothebys auction of  Kang Hsi porcelain.

http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/2014/kangxi-porcelain-n09110/kangxi-porcelain/2014/02/kangxi-porcelain-a-.html

That will give you a good idea of possible values.

And here is a Kang His teapot that was found on a shipwreck, although the site doesn't say which wreck.

https://orientalceramics.com/index.php/product/a-yongzheng-porcelain-teapot-from-the-ca-mau-cargo/

They are not always marked, but if you are lucky enough to find a mark, this site that shows the Kang Hsi marks might come in handy.

https://antique-marks.com/kangxi-chinese-porclain.html

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Source: MagicSeaWeed.com

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It looks like we could get some good surf next week.  The forecast surf has increased to 4 - 7 feet now.  It will probably change some in the next few days.  It could get either bigger or smaller.  It is something to watch though.

In the mean time, we're getting some decent southish winds.  There are a few beaches that sometimes improve with south winds.

The tides are pretty flat.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

10/29/18 Report - Eerie Eelie Beach. Some Small Erosion. Not Kang Hsi, Oxidation on Nice Mercury Dime.

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

John Brooks Beach Sunday Afternoon.

The surf wasn't large but the wind direction was good so I went out to take a look at the beaches yesterday.  Often when a front comes through you'll get a little cutting.  As you can see from the photo above, there was a little erosion.  The surf and tides were high, so the cut was low on the slope. The sand in front of the slope was fairly soft.

The weather was beautiful, and on such a beautiful Sunday afternoon, you'd expect to see a lot of people, but there were very few people at the beach.  Evidently the Red Tide was still keeping people away.

I felt a little respiratory irritation, but not as much as at Jensen Beach a couple days ago.  There were a few dead fish and eels.  

I didn't know there were eels in the lagoon until the I saw some dead ones over there recently.

John Brooks Beach Sunday Afternoon.

Notice how the water is washing up onto the beach here was at about a thirty degree angle.  That was directly below a cut and was the cause of the cut.  

Frederick Douglass Beach Sunday Afternoon.

Above is the view looking south from Frederick Douglass beach.  As you can see there was less erosion there.  The depth of the foot prints also shows you that the sand was soft there.

Fort Pierce South Jetty Beach Sunday Afternoon.

There was a nice cut south of the Fort Pierce Jetty.  Unfortunately that is all renourishment sand.  

Notice the steep slope in front of the cut in the distance.  That is down near the old picked-over wreck.

For such a beautiful day, it is a shame that people weren't able to enjoy it more.

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Blue and White Beach Shard.

If you were walking the beach and found this shard, at first glance you might think Kang Hsi.  If you've seen much Kang Hsi, a closer look will show that it is something else. Take a look at the broken edge.

Edge of Shard.

The paste is not as white and fine as Kang Hsi.  This paste is more coarse and not as hard.  But that isn't all.  The top layer of blue sits on top of the surface.  Kang Hsi has a transparent layer and the blue penetrates down through that layer.  I think I've shown that before.

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1942 Mercury Dime.

This is an old find that I decided to experiment with.  I'm experimenting with methods of removing the black oxidation.

Close View of Oxidation.

This dime was probably in excellent shape when it was lost.  The date and lettering is still very nice.

It is very rare to find a nice silver coin on a salt water beach that isn't badly damaged.

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We'll have some more north wind, but the surf won't pick up until late Tuesday.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net