7/1/20 Report - Gold Sovereigns Found by New Detectorist. Ring, Button and Other Old Finds.

By the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of TreasureBeachesReport.blogspot.com.

Old Calendar Image.

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An amateur metal detectorist on a family holiday in Victoria’s famous goldfields has found 14 coins potentially worth thousands of dollars.

Bev Martin, 60, was searching for gold nuggets last week in Victoria’s ‘Golden Triangle’, two hours north-west of Melbourne, when her metal detector blared out to let her know she had found something special.

She started digging with her shovel before unearthing the rare coins thought to be over 150 years old...

Ms Martin, who has only recently taken up the hobby, was keen to share the discovery online with the Detecting Downunder Facebook group.

‘We’ve all heard the story of that person out on their first treasure hunt with a metal detector and hits the mother load,’ they said.

‘Well, break out your tissues because it’s happened again.’...

See

https://en.brinkwire.com/news/amateur-metal-detector-finds-fourteen-extremely-valuable-sovereign-coins/

or

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8472753/Amateur-metal-detector-finds-FOURTEEN-extremely-valuable-sovereign-coins.html

Thanks to William K.

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Source: Upnorthlive.com site linked below.

MACKINAW CITY, Mich., (WPBN/WGTU) -- The 2020 archeological season at Colonial Michilimackinac is off to a great start!

According to Curator of Archaeology for Mackinac State Historic Parks Dr. Lynn Evans, researchers found what appears to be an intaglio glass, or possibly crystal, sleeve button.

"We are not sure who the figure is, but it appears to be a Classical figure, which might have appealed to an educated man of the eighteenth century...

Ring Found at Same Site.

Source UpNorthLive web site.  Link below.

Here is that link.

https://upnorthlive.com/newsletter-daily/discovery-of-history-behind-colonial-michilimackinac-kick-off-the-2020-dig-season

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Excavations at Athlone Garda Barracks have offered a revealing insight into the life of a 17th century soldier, unearthing coins, musket balls, a thimble, a hair comb, among other items. The station covers a sizeable part of South Roscommon and a new station is currently Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran, Minister of State for the Office of Public Works announced the interesting finds unearthed during the monitored excavation works on the new Garda Station on Barrack Street, Athlone...

The items uncovered range from coins to musket balls, to a thimble and a hair comb, and fragments of clay pipes and glassware as well as military buttons, uniform buckles, and interesting animal bones...

Here is that link.

https://roscommonherald.ie/2020/06/25/musket-balls-coins-and-other-items-unearthed-at-athlone-garda-station/#.XvoWTUBFxYe

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I'm surprised that BLM accepts US currency that bears the image of slave holders, many other symbols that they should find offensive, and since they say it is the product of a capitalistic system powered by slave labor.  Consistency of thought and argument is extremely rare these days.  Logic, reason intellectual honesty are out of fashion.

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On the Treasure Coast expect a one or two foot surf for another week or two.

The National Hurricane Service expects no cyclones in the next forty eight hours.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

1/14/20 Report - Some Early 2020 Treasure Coast Finds.

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

One Uncleaned Half Reale With Two Others.

Finds and photo by Terry S.

Yesterday I posted photos of some finds made by Terry S.  After sending those pictures, Terry sent me the photo above.

Referring to the items I posted yesterday, Terry then continued with the following. 

… Just before I found them I found this half reale. I didn’t clean it to be able to show others what they look like when found. If you look closely you can make out the cross on it. The cleaned 1/2s on either side I found a couple years ago and the dime is to show size...  There are a lot of people out there that have never found a 1/2 and don’t know what they look like when found before cleaning. I enjoy your blog and check it daily as many of my friends. You put out a great blog and I commend you. Terry

As you can see, the uncleaned new find (in the middle) is encrusted as found, and it is difficult to tell what it is except for the faintest bit of the cross showing.  I'll talk more about that another day.

Thanks Terry.

Below are a couple interesting finds from Alberto S., including a quarter for size comparison.

Shard and Button Find

Finds and photo by Alberto S.

Alberto asked me for comments on these and one other find he made.  I thought these two were the most interesting.  He said the button rang up as a 12.8 on a CTX 3030.

That is a very interesting button.

Concerning the shard, what I would want to see is the edge of the shard.  I once did a post on the subject of identifying porcelain and Kang Hsi.   Actually, more than one post.  Anyhow, the edge of Kang Hsi porcelain will show a very fine dense and very white paste.  The blue paint will have depth and appear to sink into the glaze rather than sit on top of it.

Here is one link that will direct you to additional information.

https://treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com/2019/05/52919-report-book-on-1715-wrecks-kang.html

Thanks Alberto.  Very interesting.  Of course, any information or comments about those finds would be appreciated.


DJ sent me a photo from the Facebook page of a Tom J. whose page says he was in Melborne with the family for a couple of days and one afternoon did some detecting north of Wabasso where he found the item shown in the following photo.  He said it rang up as a 20 on the Equinox and thought it was going to be a penny.

Item Reportedly Found North of Wabasso by Tom J.

Photo submitted by DJ

I magnified the photo and it appears to have a Potosi like cross on it, but it also appears to have a strange raised edge around it.  I can't really see it very well.  I also was not able to read the entire Facebook page, but the text I could read ended by saying "So don't get too impres…"  Sounds like there might be a surprise ending.  I wasn't able to read the reveal, but have a suspicion.irme

See tomorrow's post for the conclusion of this story.

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The beginning of the year wasn't the worst for metal detecting on the Treasure Coast.  It is the time of year when beach detecting conditions often improve.  Too bad there is so much renourishment sand on so many beaches.  Still, as you can see, some interesting things have been found.

The predictions call for a 3 - 4 foot surf on the Treasure Coast for at least three of four days.  The low tide will be decent.

Nobody has run down the mark's on Duane's silver ring yet.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

12/8/19 Report - A Couple Beaches and A Couple Finds. College Inn Bottle.

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

Red Cross Blood Donor Pin Find.

I took a look at John Brooks and Frederick Douglass beaches late this morning.  Here is John Brooks.

John Brooks Beach Around 11 AM Sunday Morning.

For some reason the gates were still closed at 11 AM at John Brooks.  Frederick Douglass park was open though.

The beach at John Brooks looked very much like the beach at Frederick Douglass.

Frederick Douglass Beach Sunday Morning.

Neither beach had significant cuts.  There were a good number of shells up around the high tide line at both beaches.

Frederick Douglass Beach Sunday Morning.

There were still a good number of coins and other cheap jewelry on the Fort Pierce beaches.  I found the above Red Cross Blood Donor Pin at Fort Pierce.  It is only one half inch across.  At first I thought it must be a very small coins such as an Ore or Kopec.

I remember another type of Red Cross pin from when I was young.  It was more of a thin tin and had a tab that bent over to attach to your collar or lapel.

This one evidently had a straight pin at one time.

Back of Same Red Cross Blood Donor Pin.

I have no idea what the "A" means or the age of the pin.

Coins and a few bits of cheap jewelry were found this morning.

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A day or two ago I showed a College Inn bottle found by Joe D. and discussed some possibilities.

Jorge Y. sent this photo of a College Inn bottle he found online.

College Inn Bottle with Label.

Submitted by Jorge Y.

This bottle has the same kind of "College Inn" embossing as the bottle submitted by Joe D., so I'm assuming that it comes from the same company, but I think they probably held different things.

Thanks Jorge.

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Yesterday I was talking about how different beaches give up different kinds of finds.  Besides the different kinds of finds you can also get some clues about where certain items came from by the type of encrustation or corrosion.

I always like the gun metal blue patina on old silver coins from the cold fresh water lake of Minneapolis, for example.

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Button With Red Cut Stone Found Today.

Here is another item I found today.  Looks like it  would be from Marie Antoinette's treasure.  Just joking.

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The surf is going to increase a little through the week but not much.

Source: MagicSeaWeed.com.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

7/27/19 Report - Mystery Item Find. Enameling and Cloisonne. Assessing Possible Age of Items.

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

Domed Cloisonné Button.

Measures 5/8 inch diameter.

Here is a dug item.  I think it might be a cloisonné button, but not sure.  What do you think?

Below is the back of the same item.

Back of Same Button.

There is a gold gilt on the back, which has been mostly worn off.  The shank has also been lost.

On the front, you can see where some of the enamel has come off.

Send me your thoughts.

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I refined and improved my list of factors that can help determine the age of a dug item.

Here is my new revised list.

1. Stamps or markings   

        a. Country name or references.  

        b. Legal statement  

        c. Maker's mark  

        d. Marks of composition or purity 

        e. Owner's mark  

        f. Patent or registration marks   

        g. Retailer's name   

        h. Statement of allowed, proper or customary use 

        I. Year or date   

2. Shape

        a. Designs or symbols associated with a time period or culture.   

        b. Image of real objects or events of known date.
        c. Exact or similar example from a particular time period

3. Corrosion, weathering, aging    

4. Context or stratigraphy  

5. Known history of the area where found   

6. Usage wear 

7. Signs of manufacturing process.   

8. Hi-tech scientific testing ie. radiocarbon

Some factors or stronger than others.  By that I mean they provide more confidence or a specific date or narrow date range.

In the above listing stamps and markings are strong factors, for example, while corrosion is a weak factor that only provides a very general idea of the possible age.

Even though stamps and marks are generally relative strong factors, they can be fake, faint, incorrect or incorrectly interpreted.

Factors also intereact.  For example, corrosion might provide some information that an item has a little age, but at the same time removes or obscures stamps or marks.

Some cases are simple and clear.  A single mark might be considered highly definitive, while other cases involve multiple factors and are still not conclusive.

I once posted the silver bracelet shown below.

One additional thing that fits in with factor three is the aging of stones.  Turquoise for example changes color over time, but it probably takes an expert to observe that change.

Here are some of the factors.  The metal is silver, which is no help.  There is a lot of corrosion.  It was found on a beach where other old shipwreck items have been found.  There does not appear to be much use from wear.  Although there is a lot of corrosion, the close-ups of the hands do not appear to show a lot of wear.  Similar hands are similar to those from old shipwreck jewelry, but a photo of a extremely similar modern silver bracelet was found (thanks to Mitch K.).

A few factors can be observed, but inconclusively.

Context can be a strong factor, but it isn't in this case because of the dynamic beach environment and possibility of items from various age periods showing up at the same location.

The amount of corrosion shows that the item is not brand new, but it doesn't take long for items to corrode in a salt water environment. ( I always thought about doing experiments to see how long it takes silver to corrode in salt water, but never did it. )

And although the hands are similar from to those of older periods, they are also common on modern items, and more impressive is the near exact match with a specific example of a modern item.

Overall, the very good match with a modern bracelet seems to carry the most weight.  That, however could be a design that has been used for centuries, but we have no evidence of that.

I said factors can interact.  Here is one example.  Notice that I did not mention stamps or markings, which can be very strong and precise factors.  None were found on this item.  I searched for stamps or marks using a microscope, but it is possible that the corrosion obscured them if they were ever there.  You would certainly expect some type of silver mark on a modern retail piece, yet none was found.  Corrosion can, as you know, obscure stamps or marks.

The band seems too thin and round for most stamps or marks.  Any mark on the thin band would have to be very small, so I did a little additional cleaning of the ands, which to me seemed to be the most likely area for any stamps or marks.  I still found none.  After cleaning the hands and inspecting them closely under magnification, I still found on evidence of any stamps or marks.

I think the checklist can be helpful as it is, but I'll continue to try to improve it.  It might be helpful to define the strength and limits of the various factors.

There can still a good bit of subjectivity involved in reaching a conclusion.  I don't think I'll be able to remove that.  It might not even be desirable to do so.

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Did you know - Turquoise is a compound that includes metals such as aluminum, copper or iron. Water and oil can cause some of these metals to oxidize, or in other words rust. As a result of oxidation, the stones can actually change color.  Blue turquoise that contains copper can change from a light blue to a dark green.

Household chemicals and lotions can also cause turquoise to change color.

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First used on small pieces of jewelry, enamel is not paint but a thin coat of glass. Once applied to a metal and heated to high temperatures, will melt and become fused to the metal. This is similar to how ceramic glazes adhere to pottery. Pure gold, silver and copper were traditionally the only metals used in the enameling process...

Cloisonné: Enameling was practiced as early as the 5th century B.C. by the ancient Greeks, and it was the Greeks who developed the most well-known technique of enameling, cloisonné. The technique of cloisonné enamel is produced by by soldering flat metal strips to the surface of the piece, creating a groove. These are then filled with the enamel, and the piece is then fired until the enamel fuses. When cooled, the surface of the object is polished. Modern Chinese cloisonné is probably the most well known however, Chinese cloisonné ware isn’t the only collectable or desirable form of cloisonné. Russian cloisonné from the Tsarist era is also highly prized by collectors...

Distinguishing between antique and modern enamel can be a very complex process. Even experts can be led astray, and without a trained eye, evaluating these pieces is difficult. An antique Chinese vase was sold recently by Potburys, a UK auction house, for 31,000 pounds. Although it was first catalogued as 19th century, specialists later recognised the vase as a rare survivor from the reign of the emperor Qianlong...

Here is the link.

https://sarasotaantiquebuyers.com/how-to-identify-collectible-enamel/

That reminds of the cloisonné ring I once found just north of Turtle Trail.  The beauty of it struck me.  I always liked cloisonné, but  at the time I didn't think it could possibly be old.  I thought cloisonné was a more modern technique.  I didn't learn until years later that it could have possibly been from a shipwreck.

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Let me know what you think of the mystery item or my list of factors.

There is currently no significant weather or changes in beach conditions.

Happy hunting,
Treasureguide@comcast.net

7/13/19 Report - New 1715 Fleet Finds Being Made. Mystery Button for ID. Putting the Puzzle Together. Tropical Storm.

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

Crew of the Bottomline Salvage Vessel 

Finding Treasure Off The Treasure Coast.

I got a couple photos of brand new 1715 Fleet finds from Captain Jonah Martinez.  Jonah is working on the Bottomline this year.  Here is an eight and some four-reales that they've found.

Reales Recently Found by Crew of the Bottomline.

Congratulations!

Thanks Jonah.

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Here is a two piece button bearing a lion and crown.  I'd like help if anyone can identify it.

Unidentified Two Piece Button Find.

The back of this button is missing, but the front is in good condition.

It is just a little less than 3/4 an inch across.

Any help is appreciated.

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Putting Together the Pieces of the Puzzle.

Yesterday I showed what I think is a piece of soldier art.  That is one piece of a puzzle.  I think it is a very interesting piece, but yet it is only one piece.

The puzzle is of one place and time in history.  A lot of the pieces are there.  I showed the island, the landscape, the fort, where the cannon were, and some of the other things found there, including some buttons that tell us some of the regiments that were there.

On the island you can still see some of the stone walls where the parts of old buildings still stand.  You can see the paths that were undoubtedly the same paths used hundreds of years ago.  And we can read much of the history of the island, including about the battle.

That is a land site that hasn't changed much.  Relics can be found at about the same place where they were dropped.  That is one of the advantages of land sites that haven't been much disturbed.

Putting it all together you get a pretty good picture of that one time and place in history. There is layering.  One era rests on another.  There were the times long before when the indigenous populations used the island, and there were times later.  The different time periods are like individual picture puzzles that have to be put together, each one on top of the other.  \

On Pigeon Island, the late 1700s is the most evident time period.  Many of  the large pieces are still there, including some of the buildings and forts, but there are pieces of puzzles from other time periods still there as well.

Occasionally a piece of the puzzle from one era will get mixed in with the pieces of another.  That happens at some places more than others, like on the side of a steep slope where erosion occurs and things fall towards the sea, but there are a lot of pieces from that one period that you can put together to form a pretty good picture.  That is the way it is with some land sites, but it is much more difficult on a constantly changing beach.

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The topics are getting active, and it is time to start keeping a close eye on the weather.  We might get a storm that produces some nice erosion, and you want to be ready for that.

We have had so much flat surf, and it is continuing for now, but the systems are beginning to come off of Africa.

Source: nhc.noaa.gov

You can see Barry down by Louisiana.  The yellow system will probably fizzle out by the time it gets into the Caribbean, but you can't say for sure yet, and there will be other systems developing out there.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

2/16/19 Report - Button Find Partially Cleaned. What People Don't Know. Tips for Evaluating News Sources.

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

Small Button Uncleaned.

This is a small button I found a week or so ago.  It is shown on a dime.  It was found along with some copper and a lead shot.

Encrusted Back of Same Button.

I wanted to see what the shank looked like, so I decided to clean the button.

Another View of the Button Back.

It looked like the shank was there, but covered by corrosion, but after I cleaned it some, it was apparent that the shank was not present.

Partially Cleaned Button Back

After some cleaning I could see that the shank was completely dissolved.  In the photo above, you can see the vacancy where the shank was.   It is the hole extending from about the 8 o'clock position towards the middle of the button.

I was sorry that the shank was no longer there, but I could see what it would have looked like.

The button was copper or copper alloy, but the shank was iron.  I don't think I'll clean it any more than that.

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The latest edition of the SAR (Sons of the American Revolution) magazine reported some interesting poll numbers that were originally published in the Washington Post.  Here are some of them.

More than one in three people could not  name a single right protected by the First Amendment.

Only one in four people can name all three branches of the government.

One in three cannot name a single branch of the U. S. government.

77 percent of students in public high schools in Oklahoma couldn't not mane George Washington as the first U. S. President.  A poll in Arizona got similar numbers.

In another poll it was found that the majority of millennials (58 percent) would prefer to live in a socialist, communist or fascist nation rather than a capitalist nation.

I don't have more specific information on the poll or sample.

I knew things were headed that way, but was surprised by these numbers.

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One important skill for any treasure hunter is the ability to evaluate sources of information.  Some sources are misleading.  I've recently posted reports on finds that were filled with inaccuracies.  When you see those types of reports you have to wonder what is going on.  You need to evaluate what you read.  That is why I try to always post my sources.  You can usually go to the original source and check it our for yourself and then conduct additional research if you want to.

There are a number of signs that alert me.  One of the most obvious is wild unsupported assertions.  Some people are cautious about what they say, and some make bold pronouncements with little evidence, and as a result, often turn out to be clearly wrong.

In social media, it doesn't much matter how often you are right or wrong, as long as you get attention.  Some people work harder for attention than getting things right.

It seems to me that nothing has been a bigger failure in education than the Critical Thinking movement.  I won't get into that here even though it is a hot topic for me.

I've made my fair share of mistakes, but one thing I have going for me in this blog, is if I make a mistake, someone will usually point it out to me.  That is always helpful even though I don't always agree with every comment I receive.

Here are some good tips for analyzing news sources by Melissa Zimdars (2016) - Merrimack College assistant professor of communication & media


Avoid websites that end in “lo” ex: Newslo. These sites take pieces of accurate information and then packaging that information with other false or misleading “facts” (sometimes for the purposes of satire or comedy).

Watch out for websites that end in “.com.co” as they are often fake versions of real news sources

Watch out if known/reputable news sites are not also reporting on the story. Sometimes lack of coverage is the result of corporate media bias and other factors, but there should typically be more than one source reporting on a topic or event.

Odd domain names generally equal odd and rarely truthful news.

Lack of author attribution may, but not always, signify that the news story is suspect and requires verification.

Some news organizations are also letting bloggers post under the banner of particular news brands; however, many of these posts do not go through the same editing process (ex: BuzzFeed Community Posts, Kinja blogs, Forbes blogs).

Check the “About Us” tab on websites or look up the website on Snopes or Wikipedia for more information about the source.

Bad web design and use of ALL CAPS can also be a sign that the source you’re looking at should be verified and/or read in conjunction with other sources.

If the story makes you REALLY ANGRY it’s probably a good idea to keep reading about the topic via other sources to make sure the story you read wasn’t purposefully trying to make you angry (with potentially misleading or false information) in order to generate shares and ad revenue.

If the website you’re reading encourages you to DOX individuals, it’s unlikely to be a legitimate source of news.

It’s always best to read multiple sources of information to get a variety of viewpoints and media frames. Some sources not yet included in this list (although their practices at times may qualify them for addition), such as The Daily Kos, The Huffington Post, and Fox News, vacillate between providing important, legitimate, problematic, and/or hyperbolic news coverage, requiring readers and viewers to verify and contextualize information with other sources. 

Here is the source link, which also provides some other possibly helpful information.

https://library.nwacc.edu/fakenews/evaluating

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It looks like we're going to have a few days of small surf.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

2/11/19 Report - South Hutchinson Island Beach Conditions. A Few Finds.

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

A Few Junk Finds From Sunday.

The finds above include two pieces of copper, one completely encrusted on one side, a small lead buck shot, and a small rounded button.  The button needs some cleaning.

John Brooks Beach Monday Around 1 PM.

Since the last time I was there, John Brooks beach filled in more, and there is more seaweed.

Another View of John Brooks Monday Afternoon.

The cliff face is not as high as it was Saturday.

Frederick Douglas Beach Monday.

Frederick Douglas is deteriorating too.  It wasn't as good as John Brooks to begin with.

What I wanted to show with this photo is the buried seaweed on the front beach.  You can just see the top of it sticking out of the sand.

Fort Pierce South Jetty Monday Afternoon.

The cliff was sharp and high, however the sand in front of the cliff was pretty mushy.  A quick check revealed a smattering of modern coins and very little junk.

Overall, the South Hutchinson Island beaches are very impressive right now.

I don't know about Vero today.

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You might remember the gold Pelican of Piety artifact and the article Laura Strolia wrote about that.

Here is another article about the pelican icon.

http://thecatholicspirit.com/faith/focus-on-faith/faith-fundamentals/why-the-pelican-with-chicks-is-a-symbol-of-the-eucharist/

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Source: MagicSeaWeed.com

3/2/18 Report - Big Surf Coming. Rain Uncovers History. Ancient Burials in Gulf. Button Links.

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

Predicted Wind Direction Early This Afternoon.
Source: Ventusky.com

Here is the big news.  A front will start coming though this afternoon.  You'll see a wind shift.

MagicSeaWeed was down this morning but the last time I looked the predictions still looked very interesting - 9 - 13 feet by Sunday.  I'll update this later today.

Surfline.com is predicting a 5 - 7 foot surf for Central Florida Sunday AM, and 8 - 12 feet Sunday PM.

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Anytime earth is moved, especially in places there was a lot of activity, something good and old might be found.  Here is a story about how a rain after a drought uncovered historic ruins.

The heavy rains that hit Iraq over the past two weeks have not only put an end to the dry season, which has almost dried up the historic Tigris River, but it also helped uncover hundreds of historical ruins that were washed away in Babylon, one of the country’s most important archaeological sites.

Hussein Fleih, Babylon's director of antiquities, said in a press statement: "Among the findings were pottery utensils, coins and metal pieces."

"The discoveries will be examined to determine the exact historical period they date back to," he added, suggesting that they belong to the Parthian and Islamic eras.

"Last year, 1,000 pieces were discovered this way, which proves that the ruins may be close to the surface and not always buried deep in the ground," Fleih said.

Such discoveries after heavy rainfall are not rare in Iraq.

https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1189666/rain-iraq-ends-drought-uncovers-historic-ruins

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A fossil hunter while on a dive in 2016 reported possible human skeletal material off the coast of Manasota Key in Charlotte County, Florida. State officials explored the site in the years since and announced Wednesday, Feb. 28, the site is, in fact, a 0.75-acre Native American burial site in a peat-bottomed pond, according to a news release. 

The only known examples of submerged offshore prehistoric burial sites are known to be in Israel and Denmark.

Researchers say the water level in the Gulf of Mexico 7,000 years ago was about 30 feet below compared to today. It's likely the pond at the time was on dry land about 9 feet above sea level...

http://www.wtsp.com/article/news/local/florida/unprecedented-native-american-burial-site-discovered-off-floridas-gulf-coast/67-524076059

A fossil hunter discovered and reported this site.  He isn't described as an archaeologists. He wasn't a looter.  That was one of the things I was saying the other day about the public discovering and protecting archaeological sites in my post on the problem with archaeology.  The public must be trusted and become a bigger part of the solution instead of being alienated and treated as the problem.

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A few days ago I showed a button that I was wondering about.  As I said, I thought it was probably modern decorative.  Mitch King confirmed that and pointed out that the shank was modern.  I wasn't absolutely sure of the shank because it was crusted over and I wanted to clean it.  Well, the cleaning didn't go well.  When the crust was removed, there wasn't much left of the back, as you can see below.  That can happen.  I would have been more careful if I thought it was likely to be something good.

When trying to ID a button, the back can tell you as much or more than the front.  The shank is important, and you might also find other important marks on the back.  Remember that when sending photos for ID.

Here are some good links that will help you ID buttons.

http://nationalbuttonsociety.org/Home.html

http://www.buttoncountry.com/WorkSheets/Glossarys-FF.pdf

http://www.buttoncountry.com/BackTypes2.html

What Remains of Button Back.

As Mitch pointed out, the button back can provide good information on the age of a button.  That is something to remember.

Another thing that stuck out to me after I thought about it a while, is the small differences on the front of this button and the picture of the one that Alberto sent.  The differences seemed to be nonsensical.

Mitch found several sites where similar vintage blazer buttons were sell on the internet.  Some were said to be from the 80s, which makes sense because the pile of coins I was cleaning probably came from back around then.

Here is one of the links Mitch sent.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/566969846/mens-vintage-jos-a-bank-blazer-buttons?ref=pla_similar_listing_top-1

Thanks Mitch.

Here are a couple other things that I cleaned that were in the pile of encrusted coins.

Heavily Encrusted Objects After Acid Cleaning.

The silver ring is corrodes and very thin now.  Both are probably from the eighties or not much older.  I think the other was an earring.

There was also a flattened thimble in that group of finds.  You don't see many thimbles around anymore even though they were used for centuries.

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We could get some good hunting soon if the surf and wind predictions have been right this week.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

2/28/18 Report - Button ID in Process. Great Web Site for Identifying Fake Coins. Big Surf Predicted.

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

Found on Internet by Alberto S.

The above button is VERY much like the button I asked about yesterday (Shown below for your convenience.).  The differences are very small.

As you can see the button above was conjectured to be either WW I or WW II English/Canadian or from the Royal Italian Navy and rumored to be found at a Civil War site.  Lot of confusion there.  I'm still thinking good possibility of being modern decorative.  The back of the above button is missing while mine is obscured by encrustation.  When the back is cleaned, that should help narrow down the age of the button.  At this point, I'd guess maybe 20th century.

Mystery Button.

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I've been tumbling a lot of coins and cleaning some things lately.  When I was in Harbor Freight the other day I noticed they had a good variety of tumblers.  I'd never think of looking there for tumblers.

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Here is a super web site for identifying counterfeit and fake coins.  It is really exceptional and think you'll want to take a look at it.  It tells how to identify counterfeit coins of all types.  I mentioned it once some years ago.

Here it is.

http://www.coinnews.net/2008/02/01/archaeologists-find-old-gold-coin-worth-45000-in-latrine-at-construction-site-3899/

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"The original idea of the internet was a very decentralized system and a democratic space where everyone could have a place to talk," said Taplin. "The big three online: Google, Facebook and Amazon, are more and more becoming monopolies, so it is a winner takes all business."

We are all internet users and this is something you should know about, The internet is used for commerce communication and influence. Whether you want to sell a coin, do some research, or stick up for your hobby, you should know about the power of the internet. It can change markets, culture and who wins elections. If any of the tech giants throws their weight ever so slightly in one direction or another it can influence the world.

Here is the link to read more about that.
https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/silicon-valley-faces-make-or-break-moment-amid-big-tech-n847301

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The big news for me is the prediction of a bigger surf starting Sunday.  The predictions seem to be holding steady.  Still a few days left to see if it really happens.

Surf Predictions for Fort Pierce Area
Source: MagicSeaWeed.com

The moon is getting fuller and the tides are getting bigger.  We'll have some pretty good tides today.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net