Gold Doubloons and Pearls?

[Bigcypresshunter]

I was told to post these pics in the Spanish Cobs forum if I wanted to. The four gold coins and pearls were found by a TN member Jan. 2006, a couple of inches deep together with some rotten remnants of a pouch at the duneline on Cocoa Beach, Florida. Any comments? Please try to be polite. Looking for facts not arguments. Experts wanted.

 

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[Steve in Cali.]

They look good but they look like silver cobs, not gold.

Are the coins in you posession? I'd like to see some closeup pics of them.

They look nice.

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

I believe the owner has sold them and has no more pics. He believes they were gold. Unfortunately I only have these two pictures to identify his find.

 

[Trez]

Gold coins (escudos)
Can't be...if he says they are, then they are reproduction.
The one coin, dated 1731...Mint P, Potosi...should shed some light.
Potosi never minted a gold Escudos...that is "fact"
Im leaning towards silver...and

Just an opinion..."fact"
I agree the rings...very nice

Just the facts no arguments...book 'em Dano

Trez

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

I also believe they are reproductions... Sorry. Nice rings.

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

They look good but they look like silver cobs, not gold.

Are the coins in you posession? I'd like to see some closeup pics of them.

They look nice.

Welcome to the forum Steve. Often the color of pics can be deceiving. These coins are dated in the early 1700's. If they were silver in a saltwater beach environment for almost 300 years, they would at least be black and corroded. They are either gold, or gold plated, and/or very recently lost. Considering they were found very shallow, all together, tells me also they were recently lost.
"...also they where very shallow only a couple of inches literally in the top sand,..."quote TP
We have hurricanes with storm surge that would have reached this pouch even up into the dunes. Unfortunately the owner gave us no more pics. He still insists they are genuine Spanish Treasure. That is why I have posted here, with his permission, so the experts can take a look.

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

I have been called a lot of names and I have upset a few people since I started commenting on this story. To be fair, I will post the 2006 link so anyone that may have missed it will have the whole story.

http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,27629.msg187827.html#msg187827

...the coins wiegh arround 38.7g all told,, as for the marks iam still working on them, i know the assayers marks there are om,s and sp,s as for the dates we think possibly 1713 ish but iam having them looked at and checked out,they are gold Escudos also known as doubloons, the large coin is possibly worth around $4000, ?2200, ish maybe more once its dated and sorted,, they could have come from any ship i guess as loads went down i just dont know,, although wreckdiver may be able to help with that one,, so hey wreckdiver hope your fine buddy, i'll get you closer pics sorted out and you can take a good study for me, maybe knowing the ship would be great and the history of it, there is a om mark on the largest coin and s and p,s on the others,, hey sorry about the tax i completley forgot with excitment he he!!!,, another thing i think of now is that these coins and pearls must have been taken and hidden maybe, also they where very shallow only a couple of inches literally in the top sand, i may of missed a couple of pearls mind, but hey i guess there,ll be plenty of people there now so hey if i missed a pearl its ok LOL,,. thanks for lookin great people, HH paul.

 

[Trez]

BigCypress,

If he thought they were shipwreck...wouldn't you think to post them under that forum? or Spanish Cobs forum for that matter...strange posting all together, so far I haven't received a nasty gram from him yet, I'm sure it is only a matter of time, lol.


Trez

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

Thanks for the help Trez. I respect your opinion.. You have also posted your opinion on the "pearls" at the Gold Disc thread.

Most MDers would be glad for proper ID of an unknown find. I cannot understand why anyone would get upset over proper identification. Maybe he will come around. I hope.

 

[Zephyr]

Sorry to burst your bubble, but those coins are reproductions....

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

Pearls do not survive that well in a salt water environment unless inside a lead box.

http://news.softpedia.com/news/A-Su...timate-Found-off-Key-West-Florida-57466.shtml

Shipwreck investigators have found thousands of pearls on Friday after opening a small, lead box encountered while searching for the wreckage of the 17th-century Spanish galleon Santa Margarita.

Divers from Blue Water Ventures of Key West stated they discovered the sealed lead box, of 3.5 inches by 5.5 inches (9 by 14 cm), but also a gold bar, eight gold chains and hundreds of other artifacts at the beginning of this week.

The shipwreck was found buried beneath the ocean floor in about 18 ft (5.5 m) of water about 40 miles (64 km) west of Key West. "There are several thousand pearls starting from an eighth of an inch to three-quarters of an inch. We have no idea exactly how many, because we haven't counted them yet." said Duncan Mathewson, marine archaeologist and partner in Blue Water Ventures.

"The pearls are very rare because of their antiquity and condition. Pearls don't normally survive in the ocean very well once they've lost the protection of the oyster that makes them. In this instance, we had a lead box and the silt that had sifted into the box from the site of the Margarita, which preserved the pearls in a fairly pristine state." said James Sinclair, archaeologist and conservator consulting with Mel Fisher's Treasures, Blue Water's joint-venture partners.

 

[Dirt Fishin Dale]

This coin was also found on Cocoa Beach. Has the same shape and hammer marks.

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

This coin was also found on Cocoa Beach. Has the same shape and hammer marks.

Found by a member? Do you have a link?

 

[Dirt Fishin Dale]

He found it in 2005 north of Patrick AFP. You met this guy at Deep Six’s get together.
I think you can find more of these at the McClarty museum.

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

He found it in 2005 north of Patrick AFP. You met this guy at Deep Six’s get together.
I think you can find more of these at the McClarty museum.

Oh yes. I remember seeing the coin. Reproduction.
Reproductions are out there and they are being found. It happens. Nothing to be ashamed of or embarrassed about. This shallow found pouch of reproductions and plastic pearls was most likely bought at some tourist attraction by a child and then lost. The pouch must have quickly deteriorated leaving the trinkets in a pile. It was then covered by windblown sand. That is how dunes are created. It is also possible that a large wave could have picked up an intact pouch and deposited it at the duneline. It could also have come in with the beach renourishment fill. Many scenarios. It is easy to get excited and start counting dollar value, but it is now time to face reality. These are copies.

 

[cuzcosquirrel]

Those are well known reproductions.

 

[carolus2]

I agree with Trez, silver


Carolus 2

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

I agree with Trez, silver


Carolus 2

The person who found them says they were gold and was selling some of his other "amazing" finds. One of the coins is marked 1731 Mint P, Potosi mint, which never made gold coins. They are not even the least bit corroded. They are not silver either. They are recently lost shiny reproductions along with the pearls. The rings may be gold. This is an old post that created some controversy.

 

[wreckdiver1715]

I remember this posting, he came to Cocoa beach for a week, hit the jackpot, headed back to the UK and he never paid his colonies tax...

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

He was a lucky person. He also found gold and silver at some ancient Indian site, posted pics and his friend sold them in England. I tried to get a better look at them but they sold quickly.
Also while casually testing his new metal detector on the beach, he found that large ancient 24 carat gold disc.
Very lucky, but not this time. The coins he found at Cocoa are reproductions. Id bet my charter membership on it.
Actually, I gambled my membership on this issue, but Im still here.