4/15/19 Report - New Explanation on Beaches and Cuts. Rare Strike-Over Half-Reale Coin.

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

Cuban Half Reale Struck Over U.S. Half Dime.

Source: Sedwick Coins auction.  See link below.

Here is an interesting coin that is listed in the current Sedwick auction - a Cuba 1/2 reale that was struck over a U.S. half dime.  There are other coins in the auction that were struck over coins of other countries.

Here is the lot description for this coin.

Cuba (Mayari), silver 1/2-real(?) token with incuse MORALES above 1 over 2 denomination, made from a US Seated Liberty half dime (1800s), very rare. 1.10 grams. One of very few examples known, all believed to be made from half dimes, this one to our knowledge the only one without a hole, with oversized arms (lions/castles) covering the entire reverse and the obverse punched with MORALES H(o) in a box above an incuse 1 over 2 believed to stand for 1/2 real. Clearly from the same series are some 10 centavos (supposedly) made on US dimes with incuse 10 and also a unique 20 centavos made on a Spanish colonial 2 reales (both of those denominations with JUNIO below the number), the last-mentioned with more of the reverse design showing a clear DE MAYARI below the arms. Toned Fine with no host-coin details showing.

https://auction.sedwickcoins.com/Cuba-Mayari-silver-1-2-real-token-with-incuse-MORALES-above-1-over-2-denomination-made-from-a_i33012333

This coin is lot 1020.

There are more strike-overs in the auction.  This one already has a bid of over $2000.

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These days I often hear people say "You don't know what you don't know."  There is some truth to that, but it isn't entirely true.  I personally have an unending list of things that I know I don't know and would very much like to know.

Sometimes it is very important to know what you don't know.  I wouldn't let a podiatrist do brain surgery on me, for example.  Experts should be especially aware of their limits, and have a deep respect for the boundaries of their expertise.

I previously described how cuts are created.  The one thing that absolutely has to happen is the water has to move with enough force to carry sand down the slope and out into the water.   I've described how that happens when the water hits the beach at an angle and slices sand away.

Below I have a video that I previously posted that shows how cuts are created when the water is hitting the beach at an angle - in this case, it is an extreme angle.  After that I have an excellent and very revealing video of an experiment conducted in a wave tank that shows how a cut can be created when the water is hitting the beach directly at a ninety degree angle.

Here is a video I caught that shows how a cut occurs when water hits the beach from an angle.  In this case the water flows almost parallel to the beach.  I showed this one once before.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8aCk1zC0e4

The cut is moved farther back each time the water flows along the face of the cut.  If the tide goes out and the water level drops but the water keeps hitting at a similar angle, another cut will be made lower on the beach.  You three different cuts at different levels in the video.  For a deep cut to be made the water has to keep moving along the cut for a period of time without the water level getting either much higher or lower.

That is one way a cut is created, however cuts can occur even when there is little or no angle to the water hitting the beach.

Here is a video that illustrates very clearly how a beach can erode when the water is hitting a beach straight on.  Watch closely.  This is great.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0C5sQ_NWs8

A wave tank is a different than a real beach in several ways, but the wave tank does help make some things clear.

If you carefully watch the beginning of the video, you can see a dip gradually form just below the highest reach of the water.  Watch from second three through nine and you will see a dip beginning to form.  The side of the dip highest on the beach continues to get steeper until finally it starts to collapse, and a small cliff (or cut) is formed.  The cliff becomes higher and moves farther back on the beach as the water continues to erode into it.  That is an excellent illustration that you couldn't see on a real beach in real time.

But that isn't all.  After the first cut, a second cut forms a little lower on the beach.  Why is there a space between the cuts, and why does the second cut form where it does?

What happens is that the sand from the first cut moves down the slope and that hump forms a steeper slope which focuses the force of the water and creates a new a new cut.

To sum it up, under specific circumstances such as those illustrated in this wave tank video, water hitting straight onto the beach CAN, under certain circumstances, cause a cut by first creating a dip that gradually increases until the slope is so steep that it begins to collapse, therefore creating a cut.

Steeper beaches return water at a speed and force that can carry sand down the slope (erosion).  Waves with less force cause lower wider beaches that deposit sand on the beach instead of pulling it back into the water.

A real beach is different in a variety of ways.  For one thing you don't have straight walls and the waves are more irregular in both shape and timing.  The beach is not straight either.  And the sand can vary in a number of ways, including grain size and compactness.

There is much more that you can see in that video if you keep watching, but that is enough to assimilate at one time.  I'll probably comment on more of what you can see in that video at some other time.  I do wish I could slow the video down.

Here is one tip if you want to study the video some more - watch the turbulent areas.

While on the subject I'll throw in one more video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05EQLQqKMGU&pbjreload=10

I didn't even get into what is special about cuts or why they are good for metal detecting.  I'll do that in the future.

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The tides are getting a little bigger.  Today there will be a small negative tide.

The surf is only around two feet.

As I recall, Easter is on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Spring equinox.

I think what I posted today will help you understand beaches better.  There is more to come.


Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

9/22/16 Report - Pigeon Island. How To Metal Detect a Steep Hillside. Spys In The American Revolution.

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

Photo by Dale Lutchman
Source: Pinterest

Obstacles are often opportunities in disguise.  That is particularly true when it comes to metal detecting.

Pigeon Island was detected many years ago when it was overgrown and in disrepair. (See photo of old building above.). It is now a national park, has a restaurant and is a tourist spot, and of course, should not be detected.

Pigeon Island.
Source: pinterest
Photo by Sally R.

You can't see it well in this photo but the peak on the left has a cannon emplacement.  Another canon emplacement was located at the base of the taller peak, now hidden by the trees.

The building shown in the first photo is located by the trees in the flat area under the tallest peak.

The peak was used by the British to observe the French fleet at Martinique.

Here is a little of the history of Pigeon Island.

Pigeon Island was first occupied by the Amerindians, mainly Caribs. The island was later occupied by pirates whose leader was a Norman Captain called Francois Le Clerc. He had a wooden leg and was known to the French as Jambe de Bois. The French who owned the island in 1778 declared war on the British, who retaliated by attacking them in Saint Lucia and capturing the island. The British then built a Naval Base at Gros-Islet Bay, heavily fortifying Pigeon Island. From there they were able to monitor the French fleet in Martinique which resulted in the defeat of the French at the Battle of the Saints in 1782. Pigeon Island was therefore a key factor in the Battles between the British and the French. In 1909 a whaling station was established at Pigeon Island.

Sorry, I can't find the link to that anymore.

Steep cliffs such as some of those on Pigeon Island can be difficult to detect.  Notice the steep cliff on the right side of the tallest peak leading down to the water.  Some of it is very steep and virtually impossible, but some of it could be detected using the technique I'll now describe.

If you are on a steep hillside, use a shortened rod as shown below.  You might choose a dive rod.  I have used a short length (just over a foot) of furring as a short rod or handle.  All you need is a bit of a handle for the coil.

You can hold onto a tree with one hand while detecting with the other.  You can also use a rope around the tree.

Another advantage of using a small length of wood instead of your standard detector rod is that it can be easily stowed in a backpack with your control box and coil.

Any hillside like that can hide nice finds.  It won't be easy though, at least until you get the technique down.

Good boots are also helpful in keeping your feet dug in and steady.

I should mention that recovery can also be tricky.  After pinpointing, you'll want to be able to attach your coil to your belt and use the free hand to dig.  Be careful to not let items roll down the hill.

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The summer 2016 issue of the SAR magazine has an article written by Liam O'Connor about spying in the American revolution.

One American spy that we all know is Nathan Hale who uttered the famous line, "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country," before he was hanged.

The Culper Ring was an American military spy organization operating in New York City during the British occupation.

Spys were referred to by coded numbers.  Robert Townsend, a very productive spy for the Americans, was 723, for example.

Robert Townsend uncovered a British plot to flood the American economy with counterfeit dollars and warned the Americans of Benedict Arnold.

Code names, ciphers, dead drops and invisible ink were all used by the Americans during the revolution.

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The storm situation remanins unchanged.  Karl is a tropical depression, and Lisa is still a tropical storm.  I don't believe either will affect our beaches.

The surf will be picking up a little.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

12/15/15 Report - Shifting Cuts and Dips. Atypical Spots Along The Treasure Coast. Decreasing Surf.

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treaurebeachesreport.blogsspot.com.

One Treasure Coast Beach Yesterday.

Most beaches don't look very good now.  There are a few more interesting places to be found such as the cut shown below.

That cut is less than fifty yards long.  You can see about eight feet of a newly exposed log sticking out of the cliff, and the cliff is about seven feet high at the highest point.

I saw a few stumps up the beach that I hadn't seen in years.  Those places were mushy with new sand though.  I should have been there earlier.

One Treasure Coast Cut I Saw Yesterday

We've had a few direction changes in the wind and surf.  The wind changes a lot more than the surf direction.

When the surf changes direction and when any dips are not refilled by the change, the dip can move either north or south.   If the cut isn't filled completely, it might be partially filled and the low spot or hot spot in the cut can shift in one direction or another.

When a dip is caused by a north or northeast wind, if the surf changes and starts coming from the south, for example, the south side of the dip might start to fill in and the hot spot might then move to the north side of the cut.

Although I haven't been out much lately and haven't seen a lot of the beaches, I suspect that places like the one shown immediately above are very rare.

Toy Run Sunday

Sunday motorcycles stretched for several miles during the annual toy run.

The surf will be decreasing this week up until the weekend.  It is supposed to be pretty smooth Friday and then start increasing during the weekend.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net