A Charming Reminder of Our NJ Dutch Heritage!

[Erik in NJ]

When I found this little silver charm yesterday I was just a bit shocked and forgot all about the cold weather that I was hunting in. This also came from the colonial house I have been hunting. I got a small peep sound on my Explorer SE that was repeatable, however the detector was also nulling and when I tried to pinpoint, it seemed to focus on what must have been an iron object. I would normally have passed on this signal as iron falsing, but something made me go ahead and dig. Perhaps I did it because this house has yielded so many amazing relics so far.

Out of the hole at about 5" popped this beautiful little silver Dutch "wooden" shoe! The Dutch represented many of the early settlers in my area and this house has been owned by a number of prominent Dutch families since its construction back in the 1700s.

I'm not sure that the charm is that old as it contains an 835 silver content (which is unusual as far as I know) and a hallmark that resembles a key or a screw. There is also a date letter that I cannot make out yet. The heel area is either painted or enamelled red. It's such a beautiful tie in to our local history and to this house in particular. I'm betting that this charm was made in Holland and sent to America as a gift.

Just out of sheer curiosity I had to dig the iron signal next to it. It turned out to be a rusted square nail about 2" - 3" from where the charm laid buried. Being able to recover such a beautiful small item so that it can again be admired was a great thrill. I was yet to find one more incredible find and a first for me yesterday.

 

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[wheatfinder13]

Great find

 

[strateloss]

Nice find bud!! Can't wait for the spring!!

 

[granthansen]

An amazing, BIG find if you ask me! The Dutch settled my NJ town in the 1600s... maybe some day I'll find one and we'll have a complete pair.

 

[Erik in NJ]

Thanks Grant!! Will be interesting to ID the hallmark et al and get a date on it. I just cleaned the rest of the dirt that you can see in the scan with a bit of hydrogen peroxide. When I see you you can see first hand how tiny the charm is...fact that I got a decent signal next to a square nail was to me a bit of a minor miracle

 

[John Boy]

Now that's a neat find.

 

[detroitdigger]

Cool clog

 

[Erik in NJ]

Thank you to all that replied to this thread! Can anyone help with the hallmark?

 

[GMD52]

Congradulations on your great, historic find. My Dutch ancestors settled I the Hudson Valley in the 1640's, and many still live on the old home lands.

 

[NJLargeCent]

Tangible reminder of Bergen County's Dutch lineage. Thrilling find, I'm sure. Nicely done, Erik!

 

[Wildcat1750]

Nice find! It's so easy to overlook the fact that the Dutch played a key role in settling your area as well the parts of New York where I grew up.

 

[dutch-man]

that is a great find !

old farmers in my neighborhood , still walking around on these clogs

is it possible to get a close up picture of the mark

then I can check it out here for you

 

[Erik in NJ]

that is a great find !

old farmers in my neighborhood , still walking around on these clogs

is it possible to get a close up picture of the mark

then I can check it out here for you

Thanks for your help--I will try to post a higher resolution scan tonight!

Best, Erik

 

[ce550av8r]

That's a pretty interesting find! Very cool.

 

[gunsil]

835 is coin silver !!

 

[Erik in NJ]

835 is coin silver !!

"The United States government first started using coin silver in 1792, but at that time the purity could range from 750 to 950 per thousand. In 1906, the United States government passed a law defining coin silver as 900 parts per thousand."

So it would have to be marked 900 or .900 to be coin silver.

 

[dutch-man]

is there also a letter in the mark ?

 

[Erik in NJ]

Hi dutch-man!

That looks just like the hallmark!--I believe what I thought was a letter on the left is actually part of the hallmark itself. I will get a high-resolution scan for you this evening. 1953--is it really a modern piece? It was found in an area where I have found so many colonial and Victorian relics I'd assumed it was at least from the 1800's...oh well, it's still a lovely silver charm. The house is currently owned by a family of Dutch descent so it may have belonged to them. I will have to ask them! What is the design of the hallmark and do you happen to know the maker or city that it came from?

I have another brooch found a few years back that I will have to dig out that depicts (what appear to be) three Dutch boys featuring several different vibrant colors of enamel. This was dug at a house that dated back to the mid 1800's--not as old as the house where this charm was found, but it's still a beautiful item, though it's sustained some environmental damage from being in the New Jersey soil for so many years.

Thanks again for your kind research and please let me know if you are able to determine anything else about the charm.

 

[dutch-man]

is the inside of the clog open or closed ?



the clog is certainly not older than 1953 , but still about $ 65 worth (50 euro,s) over here.

 

[Erik in NJ]

is the inside of the clog open or closed ?

Hi, It is open and the heel area is painted red.