11/26/19 Re;port - Two Detectorists Pay Big Price for Not Declaring Finds. Billion Dollars Treasure Stolen. 1715 Fleet Silver Dog Collar.

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

Part of Huge Viking Hoard Discovered by Two Detectorists.
Source: metro.co.uk link shown below.

I'm having all kinds of trouble getting my post posted today.  Seems like ghosts of turkeys past are getting in the works.

Anyhow, the two detectorists who didn't report the huge Viking hoard they found are going to jail along with two accomplices.

Here is what the judge had to say the them.

The Judge added: ‘The irony in this case is if you, George Powell, and you, Layton Davies, had obtained the permissions and agreements which responsible metal detectorists are advised to obtain, if you had gone on to act within the law after you found this treasure, you could have expected to have either a half share, or at very worst a third share of over £3 million to share between the two of you.

 ‘You could not have done worse than £500,000 each.

 ‘But you wanted more.’

Here is the link for the rest of that article.

https://metro.co.uk/2019/11/23/12000000-viking-hoard-metal-detector-thieves-jailed-11205021/

Tis the season of greed.


In today's International Business Times was another treasure story gone bad.


Treasure Heist: Burglars In Germany May Have Stolen Jewels And Other Items Worth About $1 Billion.

Police in Germany are searching for a group of thieves who stole priceless treasures from one of Europe's largest collections of jewelry and ornaments. Bild newspaper noted that the jewels and other treasures could be worth up to 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion)...

Dresden's State Art Collection Marion Ackermann said the value of the collection is “incalculable” because the work was considered “unsellable.” Because of this, it will be difficult to determine the exact value of what was stolen.

The vault was first established by Augustus the Strong, ruler of Saxony, in the early 18th century to house the valued items. It was part of Augustus’ efforts to turn Dresden in a center for the arts in Central Europe that also involved commissioning works across the city to sell the city’s place as a cultural center..

Here is the link for the rest of that article.

https://www.ibtimes.com/treasure-heist-burglars-germany-may-have-stolen-jewels-other-items-worth-about-1-2873176


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Yesterday I mentioned horse tack.  I think we find more artifacts like that than we know.  I suspect many pieces or parts remain unidentified.

Noel Wells' book Small Arms of the Spanish Treasure Fleets has a section on horses and dogs because of their use in warfare and conquering the New World.

There was a picture of a engraved silver collar found on a 1715 Fleet wreck that was thought to be a dog collar.

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The weather, as you know, is beautiful.  The high tides are still nice and high, but the surf calm.

It looks as if in a few days we'll be getting some rougher surf.

Source: MagicSeaWeed.com

Pshewww.  I finally got it done.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

8/14/18 Report - Safe Containing Valuables Dug Up In Back Yard. Photographic History of the U. S. Navy. Lost Pin-pointer and Scoop.

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

Source: See RD.com link below.

In the past few months, I reported on a couple of caches found in Florida.  You can still find caches.  I reported on a couple just yesterday. Here is another.

The following excerpts are from article about a stolen safe containing valuables from a robbery that was found in a yard, dug up and returned to the owners.

When trees in their yard were damaged by wildlife they got a better view. "It [the box] was really prominent when the deer ate away all the foliage," Matthew said.

After digging it up they realized it was a rusty old safe. Inside they found wet money, and a lot of jewelry in plastic bags.

"Hundreds, jewelry, diamonds, engagement ring. Dozens of rings, gold with jade. It was stunning," said Matthew.

There was also a piece of paper with an address -- one of their neighbors.

"First, I knocked on the door and I asked them if they were ever robbed and they said they were," Matthew said.

According to the New York Police Department, a burglary was reported at their neighbors' home the day after Christmas in 2011. The only thing taken was the safe. It had a large amount of cash, jewelry and other items inside: a total of $52,000 worth of property, police said...

And here is the link for the rest of the article.

https://www.rd.com/true-stories/haunted-bodies-of-water/

As I've said before, not all caches are found in treasure chests.  In fact few are, but this one was found in a safe.

I also commented before that you don't usually need a two-box detector some type of super metal detector to find a cache.  This safe was sticking out of the ground.  It wasn't ten feet deep.

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I want to recommend a web site today: navsource.org.  NavSource provide a photographic history of the U. S. Navy.  It is run by volunteers who do a fantastic job.

You can find pictures of many of the 20,000 registered U. S. Navy ships.  I contributed a few photographs, including the one below.

You might have a few of your own that you want to contribute.  Maybe you got some from your father or grandfather.

Life on the YMS 250 Near Lavorno Italy During WW II.

The YMS 250 shown above was a wood-hulled minesweeper that crossed both the Atlantic and Pacific.  Minesweepers cleared the way for the larger ships.

At the top of the above photo, you see a sunken Italian destroyer.  Also notice the dog sleeping at the base of the three-inch gun

You'll find additional information, including how to submit photos, on the web site.

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A Garrett Carrot pin-pointer and handmade scoop was left in the sand at the base of the Wabasso boardwalk recently.  Dan B. would like it back if anyone found it or knows of its whereabouts.  Email DanielB0330@gmail.com.

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The disturbance that has been hanging around in the middle of the Atlantic and bringing us southeast winds isn't going anywhere fast.  It has increased in strength a little and drifted farther south.

On the Treasure Coast we still have a calm surf, and we're still having some nice low tides.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

7/18/18 Report - Old Silver Ring Stolen. Test of Metal Detector On Silver Coins.

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

Stolen Ring Thought To Be 1700s Era.

I decided to do a little test using the Garrett Ace 250.  I'll use other detectors in the future, but decided to start with a common and inexpensive model.

For test objects I decided to use coins that were close in size, weight and composition to Spanish reales.  I used a silver dime, quarter, half dollar and peace dollar - all of 90% silver.

The diameters were 17.91, 24.26, 30.6 and 38.1 millimeters, which is close but not exactly like one, two, four and eight reales.  Just as an example, the silver dollar is 38.1 mm and the eight reales would be about 38 mm.  Pretty close.

The weight of the silver coins is 2.59, 6.259, 12.59 and 26.73 grams.  Again, that is close to the weights of the Spanish colonial one, two, four and eight reales, which varied to some extent for a variety of reasons.

The diameters and weights of the coins used in the test are highly correlated.

The vertical scale is diameter in millimeters and the horizontal scale is weight in grams.

The correlation is naturally high, but as you can see the relationship between diameter and weight is not linear.

The similarity of the modern coins and Spanish colonial coins in both size and weight is not accidental - the American coinage being pretty much based upon the Spanish.

I did what I would call a ground test in an area with virtually no mineralization but some amount of ambient electrical interference.

Coins were placed on the ground and the height of the coil that continued to produce a good steady signal was measured.

The dime was detected at approximately 7.5 inches, the quarter at 8.0 inches, the half dollar at about 8.5 inches and the Peace dollar at 9.5 inches.

Depth approximations were not highly precise.  Results were also specific to the location and environment.

Depth detectected relative to coin weight.

Depth detected relative to coin diameter.

Coin weight and diameter are highly correlated, which makes it difficult to tell which is most important, but I have previously found and stated that surface area is more important than the weight of the object in determining how deeply a coin will be detected.  The surface area of the coin, however, is not as important as the presented surface.  By that I mean a coin with a large diameter, if tilted or on edge will not have as large a surface area relative to the position of the coil and therefore will not be detected as deeply.

Given the number of variables and the lack of precise measurements, the results should be taken as only approximations.

All-Metals mode and maximum sensitivity was used during the entire test.

Spanish cobs are all so different that I thought the silver U.S. coins would be more useful as test objects and allow more comparisons and generalizations.  Beach recovered Spanish cobs are all of different sizes and shapes.  As I've reported, they can be less than half the minted weight and are of different shapes.

It should also be noted that the depth was measured when the object was under the center of the detector coil at near optimal sweep speed.  When the object was closer to the edge of the coil, depth was less.  And if a less optimal sweep speed was used, depth would have been less.

I've commented at length on the limitations of both air and ground tests.

In the future I will be conducting more tests with other metal detectors.

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I received an email reporting the above ring stolen during a club meeting.  The owner would like it back.

That, by the way, is another good reason to keep good records on your finds.

Most detectorists go out of their way to return lost items, but like with any group of people, there are some bad apples that spoil it for everybody.

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A lot of people are still reading my old Cooper's Treasure posts.  I don't even watch it.

There is no tropical cyclone in the Atlantic.  The surf is up a foot or two.  The tides are still pretty good, but lessening slightly.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

3/31/17 Report - 220 Pound Gold Coin Stolen. Marine Technology Journal. Historic Key Biscayne.

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

Source: See USAToday link below.

Did you hear about the 220-pound gold coin that was stolen from a German museum?  Yes, 220 pounds!

The coin, if it remains a coin, features a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II on the front and three maple leaves on the back. It was issued by the Royal Canadian Mint a decade ago, part of a promotional campaign for a line of gold coins. It's been on loan to the Bode from a private collection since 2010, museum officials said...

The stunning heist of a 220-pound gold coin worth more than $4 million from a German museum has bewildered authorities in Berlin and sparked a desperate hunt for the scratch before it is melted down.

The Canadian coin, known as "Big Maple Leaf," has a diameter of more than 20 inches and is more than an inch thick — it would make a great coffee table. It has a face value of $1 million, but the value of the gold is closer to $4.5 million.

Authorities suspect that the coin may have already been melted.

It appears that a wheelbarrow was used to get the coin to a car.

Here is the link for more about that.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2017/03/28/spectacular-theft-4m-gold-coin-could-end-meltdown/99721988/

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You might be interested in the Marine Technology Journal.  You'll find articles on topics such as underwater imaging and ROVs.

Here is a link to one issue.

https://www.mtsociety.org/pdf%5Cpublications%5Cjournal%5CMTS39-3Color.pdf

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President Trump's Florida White House reminds of another Florida White House.  Nixon had a Florida White House on Key Biscayne.

I remember driving by the five home compound back in the day when Nixon was in office.  There was a helicopter pad at the time.  The compound didn't seem heavily protected back then, as I recall.  He probably wasn't in residence at the time, but things were different back then.  You could drive down the street right in front of it and the lots, as you would expect on Key Biscayne, were small.

Here is an article about that as well as a photo of what it looked like back then.

http://whcacannonball.blogspot.com/2012/05/president-nixons-florida-white-house-at.html

I did a lot of detecting around Key Biscayne.  It has a lot of history.  There was the old coconut plantation, and the lighthouse that the Seminoles burned, the well where old sailing ships used to resupply, and even treasure chests being found, one of which was found in an area now eroded into the Bay.

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I haven't been to the beach for a few days.  Very busy.

The surf will be down around two feet or a week or two.  We've been having some nice low tides.  The combination of small surf and low tides might give me the chance to do something I've been wanting to do for quite a while.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

12/1/16 Report - Million Dollars of Gold Flakes Stolen. Great Bottle Book. Gold Torc Found.

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

Turtle Trail North Thursday
Photo by Darrel S.

Darrel, down from Gainesville, hit the Treasure Coast beaches hard for the last month and sent me a lot of reports and photos,  They were very helpful to me.  Thanks Darrel.

You can tell the cuts are old.  They are beaten down.  When they are new, they are more like a wall. They just sort of crumble over time if the water isn't hitting them.

In the above photo you can see that the water had just splashed up on the foot of the cuts.

Darrel says that Seagrape Trail access is still closed.

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Over a million dollars worth of gold flakes was stolen from the back of a truck in New York in broad daylight with bystanders not paying any attention.  

Here is the link to that story.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/11/29/us/daring-gold-theft-ny-trnd/

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A few days ago I posted a link to an article about how to tell the age of Coke bottles.  That post received a good number of Google Pluses.

Here is a great book that will give you tons of good information on how to date and identify all kinds of bottles.  You can read much of it online as a preview.

The book, written by Peter Schulz, has the title Baffle Marks and Pontil Scars: A Reader on Historic Bottle Identification.

Click on the title to look at that preview.

I highly recommend taking a look at this book if you collect bottles at all.

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3000 Year-Old Gold Torc (Belt) Find

A mysterious 3,000-year-old gold torc, described as one of the largest ever discovered, has been unearthed in the U.K.

Discovered in Cambridgeshire last year, the torc, which dates from between 1300 and 1100 B.C., went on display at the British Museum in London this week...

Here is the link for the rest of that story.

http://www.foxnews.com/science/2016/11/30/huge-3000-year-old-gold-belt-unearthed-in-uk.html

Thanks to Bill White for that link.

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Expect a small surf for the next week or two.  Nothing exciting.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

3/4/15 Report - Lead Leads To Gold. $4.8 Million In Gold Bars Stolen. Sunken Japanese Warship Found? Sinking Coins.

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


Japanese WW II Warship
Possibly Discovered by
Apple Co-founder Paul Allen.
Source of Photos: see aol.com link.

Japanese Warship?

What do you do after founding one of the most admired and successful American tech companies and earning millions of dollars?  That's easy!  Go treasure hunting.  

That is what Apple co-founder Paul Allen did.  Here is the link for the rest of the story and more photos.

http://www.aol.com/article/2015/03/04/microsoft-co-founder-says-he-found-sunken-japan-wwii-warship/21149409/?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl2%7Csec1_lnk3%26pLid%3D622391

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I received the following in an email from Joe D.

Our beach conditions in West Palm have been just as poor as the Treasure Coast. The renurishment projects have hit full swing in Palm Beach and Juipiter! In Palm Beach the sand is going out as quick as they haul it in, and making a secondary beach at low tide! But much of it is mushy and useless to hunt! The primary low tide area has had a lot of shells though with lots of iron, sea glass, and old worn brick pieces, but few coins! Could be that I have become too comfortable with my smaller coil and am not going deep enough! But I have had good luck this week using it on old vacant lots and small park areas! Today I hit several areas that I like to call "drive-by's" that I have made mental notes of in my daily travels. Some I only quick-scanned! The small roadside parks won out over the vacant lots today! The second park I went to produced a nice working watch on the first swing! That's the first time I have hit something good so quickly! 

I have a question that I would like you and your readers to try and help me solve! In your expert opinion, in very damp rich soil, how deep will coins sink with the constant action of earthworms? I have been finding that in a few of the places I hunt, the relatively modern coins are much deeper than they should be! And older coins that should be there are all but nonexistent! ( too deep??) And I know for a fact that these places have had NO fill added to create this challenge!

Thanks much for the beach report Joe! 

On Joe's question concerning how fast coins sink in rich soil, I want to see what you all have to say.
Send me your thoughts.  I'll gather everyone's thoughts and give a summary in a few days.

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Here is an interesting story.  275 pounds of gold bars worth 4.8 million dollars were stolen from an armored truck after the truck reportedly had mechanical difficulties along I 95.

Here is the link of the story and also the source of the photo.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/03/gold-bars-stolen-armored-truck-heist-4-million_n_6789870.html


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Not long ago I mentioned he Magruder and Dare heading back to the Margarita site.  Rough weather sent them back to port, but before returning they found an encrusted object, musket ball, pot shards and various ballast stones.
 

If you've been reading this blog very long you read when I said that gold rings are sometimes found with lead sinkers.  I just read that Mel Fisher always said,“Lead leads to gold!”  I hadn't heard that said by anyone else before.

One time that sticks out in my mind was when I was digging a hole in shallow water.  The first three dug objects were one-ounce round sinkers.  The fourth was a one ounce 14K gold class ring.

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Thanks for the emails.   Send me your thoughts on how fast coins sink in rich soil.

It looks like we'll be stuck with something like a three-foot surf for a  while.  The wind will be from the South for a couple of days.  Not very encouraging.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@Comcast.net

3/4/14 Report - Pirate's Lair, $10 Million Gold Coin Cache Stolen, and Odyssey Marine Contracted to Work On SS Central America

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



Steps Up To 17th Century Pirates Lair
Source: Livescience,com.

What would the ideal pirate lair look like?   Think 1600s.

What would you want?  Remote location?  Good view of the sea lanes?  Protected access for coming and going?

Well this might be it.  Everything I imagined.

Here is what the following linked article says.  An alliance of pirates preyed on ships laden with treasure, outmatched Britain's Royal Navy, elected their own admiral and, ultimately, were destroyed in a cataclysmic battle against a Dutch fleet in 1614.

They were a pirate alliance which operated on the southwest coast of Munster, Ireland, in the early 17th century, and now new archaeological and historical research reveals new details about their adventures.

Here is the link for more about that

http://www.livescience.com/43696-17th-century-pirate-alliance-uncovered-in-ireland.html

And here is the link for more photos.

http://www.livescience.com/43693-photos-17th-century-pirate-alliance.html



The 10$ million dollars worth of mint-condition gold coins that were found buried under a tree may have been stolen from the mint in 1899.  If that is the case, the finders won't be able to keep the coins but might get a finders fee.  Bummmmer!

I wonder what is going to happen to those coins.  They'll probably disappear into some government black hole.

http://www.aol.com/article/2014/03/04/10m-in-gold-coins-found-in-yard-might-be-linked-to-1899-heist/20842614/


Odyssey Marine Exploration has been contracted to conduct an archaeological investigation and salvage whatever remains of the cargo from the SS Central America shipwreck off the coast of South Carolina.

You probably know something of the SS Central America.  It has been well publicized and you'll see ads for the sale of its gold coins and other salvaged items.  It sank while returning from the California gold fields.

Here is the link for more about the new deal with Odyssey Marine.

http://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2014/03/03/614960/10070736/en/Odyssey-Marine-Exploration-Selected-for-Recovery-of-SS-Central-America-Gold.html


I've talked about the storms hitting the United Kingdom this year.  Everything from WW II bombs to ancient forests are being uncovered.

Here is a link for more about that.

http://www.livescience.com/43761-storms-reveal-bombs-ancient-trees.html


We're have absolutely beautiful weather on the Treasure Coast if you are thinking about playing on the beach, but if you wanted to detect the beach for old things that is a completely different matter.

The surf will be up to around four feet.  And the tides are big because of the new moon.


Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net