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[CMDiamonddawg]

Hello, After this recent Nor'easter ,I found 2 of these nails washed up on a beach in Cape May ,NJ. Quick question ,are they from an old shipwreck ? They are bronze and about 10 " long ..3/4" square ."larger than picture". ..Thanks for your help, CMD

[ivan salis]

very possible shipwreck related -- bronze nails amd spikes were commonly used in ship construction since iron would rust quickly in a saltwater enviroment

[Alexandre]

If it's bronze, its probably later than the 1780's.

[capt dom]

Bent nail construction was a common practice before advent and use of the
screw fastener. although there are countless reasons why a nail can be bent
in a shipwreck process - the bend could be a part of earlier vessel construction
process. If you found a number of these and their bends are similar this can
be the case.

Bronze nails were preferred below the waterline in better built boats later in the 18th
century as an earlier post suggested. if the bends are constant and start at about
3.5 to 4 inches this may indicate hull planking.

Other ways bent nail construction occurred was the nail was first heated and bent
then driven or in the case of earlier iron forged spikes the holes were first augered
then the spike was measured for length - then heated driven into the auger hole
then peened over on the inside....

[CMDiamonddawg]

Thanks for the replies guys . Copper piece's 10x10 and smaller and a few ,not many ,English KG 1740,172?,1753 ,2-174 ? coin are washing up past few weeks. Capt. Dom , the other nail was the same bend as the picture. Would a hull plank be more than 14"-20" wide 2 & 3/4 ' thick ? Pieces of wood planks are also there . Thanks for your reply. CMD

[capt dom]

Sounds like hull planking. Sometimes they may be double planked.
The copper looks like sheathing. It is ofter used along the gar board planks
but could also be used along the entire bottom.

Now come on! If you are actually finding coins and have been
following this forum you should figure out how to send better
photos of close ups of both sides of them

They are your best indicator of a date range.....

[divermark]

some info on copper sheathing:

http://www.globalsecurity.org/milita...-sheathing.htm