🥇 BANNER Bahamian pirate gold

Blak bart

Gold Member
Jun 6, 2016
18,632
98,132
FL keys
🥇 Banner finds
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Detector(s) used
Mine lab primary fisher secondary
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Just got back from the bahamas !! Wow !! What a trip we had. I spent 3 weeks fishing tuna, wahoo, and blue marlin !! It was go go go with the fishing and I barley had time to break out the metaldetector. But when I did it was an unbelievable ride !! Im still getting my voice back and licking my wounds. When you find a treasure spill like the one I found you hoot and holler until your voice is gone !! You guys will have to grit your teeth and get through this post it'll probably take a page to explain it all. There's alot to cover. Ill dive right in to the good stuff that came from the far out islands. Here we go !!

Boom baby Portuguese gold, and spanish silver !!
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A beautiful 1747 gold reis coin from Brazil, a badly eaten up spanish piece of eight, a 1773or5 big nose piece of eight, and a gorgeous filigree wire silver ring. All these pieces were found in 2 separate 2 hour hunts at low tide on the same beach. My original thinking from talking with locals is that a pirate long boat was dashed to pieces on this incredible shoreline trying to land there treasure. The mix of spanish and Portuguese coinage seems odd but much more research and exploration of this site is needed, and the who, what, and when of this find is driving me nuts with the research....there are some records that make some sense, but I don't want to speculate yet until I hit the books some more.

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I've dug some great iron in the bahamas and keys but this 20 inch pirate long knife has to be one of my favorites....when I hold this artifact in my hands I can feel my pirate blood boiling to life...it evokes as much emotion as the gold coin does !!

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I was able to gather up pounds of seaglass, and handfuls of great colorful potsherds for my art projects !!

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Im an opertunist, and if the detector is not producing I'll lay it aside and start to mudlarking for potsherds and pipe stems !!

I was able to pull a silver or pewter teapot lid while mud larcking an old dump site for potsherds.

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there was plenty of great ships spikes and copper alloy fasteners along with the ever present lead....the plastic of the olden days !! I got a nice ginger beer on one of my hunts and was happy about it as I never found a whole one before. Other finds included some great flat buttons including a spencers treble gilt backmarck with a greek key motiff

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At one point my best coin was an 1826 english/bahamian penny

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a pretty satisfying find...until you hit the silver and gold, and gold fever takes over !! There were harmonica reeds and another type of unidentified musical instrument reed. Im still cleaning and gathering my finds together and I've got plenty of shells too. Found a goats horn, and a boars tusk also while beachcombing for ambergris. Ill post some more pics after work...im currently putting the boat back together after a brutal 14 hour run home in heavy seas.....im battered and beaten but what a trip !! I left all my treasure gear with a fellow t-net member, including my equinox 600, and a nice map with some sites to explore...it was the least I could do for my fellow islander who helped me with transportation and and gave me the best island hospitality that could ever be expected !! I hope to return that island hospitality one day when he visits me in the keys. Ive been more than blessed to grow up both in the bahamas and keys and know many island secerets....hope I'm doing my grandpa justice. He was dual citizen and made sure I respected my bahamian heritage and conch/keys life. Wrecking is alive and well within me and beach combing is in my blood !! Woooo hoooo !! Off to work now....more to come later. Maybe my bahamian friend will make a guest appearance on this thread when he sees it....I hope so !!


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Oh ya....we caught fish too !!

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Cheers folks hope you enjoy and are inspired !! Wooo hoooo !!
 

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Garscale

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May 4, 2020
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East texas
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Almost 99.9 percent sure these coins are not washing in....they are washing out. So if they washed in that would have been 250+ years ago on a hurricane surge !! Once there in person it quickly becomes apparent that no coin can be washed up a vertical rock ledge of 6 -10 ft....so they are washing out....and may have trickled over the ledge.

That ledge sounds like an amazing place to dive. Should be a narrow line of goodies at the base.
 

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Blak bart

Blak bart

Gold Member
Jun 6, 2016
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98,132
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5
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
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That was a huge dream trip. The gold coin is off the charts but the totality of your shared trip just makes me grin. Congrats to you my friend. Well deserved banner .

You definitely have the starting point for you next adventure. You know full well there are more...

Thank you garscale....it was amazing. Let's just say it'll take some calm weather, but there should be some good opportunities just over the ledge. And yes other coins were found in the past....always check out the rumors...never know when a rumor will become a reality !!
 

Tnmountains

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Staff member
Jan 27, 2009
18,716
11,705
South East Tennessee on Ga, Ala line
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Fisher F75
Garrett AT-Pro
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Shiny...Treasure,,,Arghh. Congrats! That coin is way bigger in the hand. Nice!
 

Irishgoldhound

Bronze Member
Jul 15, 2013
2,350
2,130
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Irish...the spot that this was found is one of the most stunning beaches I've ever stepped foot on...huge sand dunes 30 foot high, massive rock out crops with huge scattered boulders, violent 8-10 foot surf smashing everything in its path, scorching hot tropical sun. I can't imagine the poor souls who had to try and survive on this lonely stretch of sand and rock 274 years ago.....survival trumps treasure by about day 3 without water....leave it where it lay and focus on survival is what I think happened !!

Well said! Sounds like a place I treasure hunted in my dream. LOL. To find a coin like that is surely a find of a lifetime! Congrats to you!!
 

DCMatt

Gold Member
Oct 12, 2006
10,356
13,478
Herndon Virginia
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Minelab Equinox 600, EX II, & Musketeer, White's Classic
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Bart - Stunning! Inspired is an understatement. I could never even dream of such a find! Wonderful story and details you provided... Well deserved banner - AGAIN!!!

BTW I really appreciate that you took the time to respond to all the posts. It speaks volumes about you as a person. Hope to meet you some time. After 16 months of 'house prison', I'm ready to travel and get out among the hoi polloi again.

Love to help you with research as I'm pretty decent with a keyboard. Loop me in if the idea interests you. You know I enjoy "doing the leg work."
 

unclemac

Gold Member
Oct 12, 2011
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...and bottles...there must be some great bottles.
 

WannaDig3687

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Jun 5, 2017
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Well I can't load pics....upload of file failed....hope it works out later. I like to keep some pics coming to keep the thread spicy !! Ill keep trying.

Your pics are probably too big for the forum. I assume you are using your phone. I edit mine and crop them down as much as I can. Hopefully that will work because it is the easiest way to explain.

Congratulations on your Banner!
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Blak bart

Blak bart

Gold Member
Jun 6, 2016
18,632
98,132
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5
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Sailors/pirate long knife. These are shorter than a cutlass, and longer than a normal knife. They would have been carried by wreckers and pirates, and to an extent by common sailors on merchant vessels. Bahamian and keys conchs call any large knife a cutass, a *******ization of the word cutlass. Still today my bahamian friends call a large knife or machete a cutass !!
 

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Blak bart

Blak bart

Gold Member
Jun 6, 2016
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5
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
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Blak bart

Blak bart

Gold Member
Jun 6, 2016
18,632
98,132
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🥇 Banner finds
5
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
Mine lab primary fisher secondary
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Shiny...Treasure,,,Arghh. Congrats! That coin is way bigger in the hand. Nice!

The full johana is double that size....maybe next time we can get a full size johana !!
 

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Blak bart

Blak bart

Gold Member
Jun 6, 2016
18,632
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1
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Well said! Sounds like a place I treasure hunted in my dream. LOL. To find a coin like that is surely a find of a lifetime! Congrats to you!!

Woooo hoooo !!:occasion14:
 

villagenut

Gold Member
Oct 18, 2014
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goitta get that in the zap tank to keep it alive for many more years.....not the fish but the pirate's machete:thumbsup:
 

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Blak bart

Blak bart

Gold Member
Jun 6, 2016
18,632
98,132
FL keys
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5
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1
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Bart - Stunning! Inspired is an understatement. I could never even dream of such a find! Wonderful story and details you provided... Well deserved banner - AGAIN!!!

BTW I really appreciate that you took the time to respond to all the posts. It speaks volumes about you as a person. Hope to meet you some time. After 16 months of 'house prison', I'm ready to travel and get out among the hoi polloi again.

Love to help you with research as I'm pretty decent with a keyboard. Loop me in if the idea interests you. You know I enjoy "doing the leg work."

Matt thanks buddy....there may be a need for your expertise in identifying objects...between ARC and yourself we should be able to identify anything that pops up. Hope you get out and about this warm season...happy hunting !!
 

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Blak bart

Blak bart

Gold Member
Jun 6, 2016
18,632
98,132
FL keys
🥇 Banner finds
5
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
Mine lab primary fisher secondary
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
...and bottles...there must be some great bottles.

Unclemac....it was blowing so hard the water was murky for my normal bottle hunts. Ill show you guys how I clue into sites though....you'll appreciate this hang on a minute.
 

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Blak bart

Blak bart

Gold Member
Jun 6, 2016
18,632
98,132
FL keys
🥇 Banner finds
5
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
Mine lab primary fisher secondary
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
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When the shallow water has these types of bottle tops....well...you should turn on the machine. When you see the little open pontils and tops like the last pic....well you should be hopeing for spanish silver !! These are the clues I want to see. Especially the onion bottle tops and open pontil stuff !!
 

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