1652 "As a mark of their soveraignty, they coyn mony" Edward Randolph, Kings Agent

[steelheadwill]

1652 "As a mark of their soveraignty, they coyn mony" Edward Randolph, Kings Agent

Hi all,
haven't posted anything in a while so I figured I'd show this dirty piece of silver.
Hunted a new site and spent an hour in the pasty mud with not much to show,
on the steep hillside along the water I noticed lots of scrap metal and trash,
made my way up the hill gathering all the copper and brass I could eyeball.
Turned on the Safari, stock coil was all I had with me,
amazingly I picked a signal from the trash, dug an 1878 IH, check the hole,
another 1878...
check the hole, another signal, different numbers.
Big root in the way, pulled some dirt from underneath, small silver coin
Take a close look, hmm 1652, that's familiar. wrap in leaf and secure it.
scan again, another signal. looks to be a Charles II Groat, now that's a rare find over here.

Very Strange, coin spill over older coin spill ? Anyway this was a first for me...

No pix of The IHs or the groat cause they got put somewhere safe in my truck
They'll turn up sometime.

This morning I identified my Oak threepence as a 'Noe-28', an 'R-6, 13-30 examples known' and she appears to be almost uncirculated and well struck (for Ma Silver) under that dirt.
Diagnostics on this one are easy, both legends start at lower left, 5 in date squashed.

Shown as an example is the Wurzbach plate coin of this variety, in the description he notes:

"Crosby could not find a specimen good enough to furnish a proper description. Excessively rare"

I take this to mean that he obtained a better specimen than Crosby, and was right proud of the fact.

Breen notes "All specimens I have examined are dogs, due to weak striking and weakly cut dies".

These quotes give you some idea of the apparent jealousy and competitiveness of collectors and 'experts' on Massachusetts silver.


given the condition of the best example I could find, I think mine is a looker.
Apparently these coins don't appear much in higher grades.

And a photo of a stern Colonial Governor from the period.


Trees seem to be sprouting all over this year.
Thanks for looking & HH Everyone

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Treasure of Victoria Peak - Grab it through Amazon!

[steelheadwill]

Thanks All!
Bill,
I wish it was that easy, research found this site, though I thought the goodies would be in the water.
(Sometimes it is easy, I found 'lot 26' with its slew of early coins & relics, (1796 HC and R6 Rosa) by random iron patch hunting)
I figured that the hillside was built up, and maybe it was.
Some think that filled areas are not worthy of search, but maybe the fill used came from the clearing of a more historic
site than the area it ended up filling
Like a lot of happenings in the MD world, Ya just never know....
since you asked,(blush) my totals are now 8 -17th C silvers, 4 of them are MA Silvers
(edited)

Dawg, thanks for the praise ! This one is so much better than the salt finds

Hogge, thanks for that confirmation ! It's the same 'R' number as my Oak shilling, but much better shape

ZDD, I am fascinated with the Feversham, a veritable time capsule that showed the coinage in circulation CA 1710.
I use it as an example to show people that Mass Silvers were commonly used and circulated throughout the colonies and abroad. It left New York with a chest of coins acquired from those currently in circulation before wrecking.
The amount of Mass silver was only exceeded by Spanish coins.
It is a crying shame that beaurocracy has stopped the search for history.
Here's an undocumented and overpriced Feversham Oak Shilling for sale,
I'd say $500 tops if I were in the market for a cleaned shilling
http://www.vcoins.com/en/stores/cal..._1652_feversham_shipwreck/320967/Default.aspx

Thanks for all your replies! Trees are everywhere, just gotta get the coil over them


"While in New York City it was recorded on September 4, 1711, that the Feversham was given £569 12s5d from the British treasury office in New York. It is not known if these funds were to be used to pay for the supplies recently acquired or if this was money to be brought to Quebec for future use. In either event it represented the coins then in circulation in New York City. On September 17, 1711 the Feversham along with the three supply ships set sail for Quebec. In the meantine, the British invasion fleet had been wrecked on August 14, 1711 in the St. Lawrence River, but news of the disaster did not reach New York until the day after the Feversham set sail. On Sunday October 7, 1711, during their journey north, the Feversham and the three supply ships sank on the rocks off the shore of Scatari Island near the coast of Nova Scotia. In 1984 the Feversham was found by a private group that conducted salvage operations over the next few years. Among the items found on board were £33 13s in coins, presumably a portion of the allocation that had been obtained in New York City. This hoard contained 8 English silver coins, 22 Dutch coins (Lion dollars), 5 coins from Spain, 504 New World Spanish coins (from one half to 8 reales coins) and 126 pieces of Massachusetts silver."

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

How to Research for Treasure Hunting and Metal Detecting From Lead Generation to Vetting - Grab it through Amazon!

[Deepdiger60]

Amazing great find Herbie . Jim

 

[steelheadwill]

That's just beyond cool Herbie . Drive your truck down to MA and I will find that groat for you.

Jeff, about the only thing I can keep organized is the photos on my computer...
everything else is a jumble. I 'refound' a bag of dug gold jewelery I had stashed in the tin last time I was craving homemade blueberry muffins.
They are in there somewhere.
PM me about what kind of diggin you like, I'm a Salem native, maybe we get a hunt in...

 

[steelheadwill]

Thanks Jim! Good to hear from you I gotta go see Mom, Happy MD and Mothers Day All !! Herbie

 

[Rick (Nova Scotia)]

Awesome find, congrats on condition.

5 17th C Silvers in a year, that is pretty damn impressive, I'm still waiting on number 1.

 

[farmdump]

BANNER! This is a awesome piece of history! Its not every day that you find a coin dating from 1652 in New England! HH!

 

[Iron Patch]

You find MA silver like others can't even find Spanish!

That coin looks more corroded than pitted so should clean up well.

 

[g-olden years]

WONDERFUL FINDS! I'm in awe of the wonderful coins & historical items that you unearth. Always look forward to seeing more!
My father's ancestors settled in early 1600's in what's now Massachusetts, New Hampshire & Vermont, so colonial items from these states are of special interest to me. My dad, who was born & raised in Keene, N.H. was apparently the first of the family in several hundred years to head south for warmer climes when he moved to Washington, D.C. as a very young man. Several times in the past, I visited the Keene area, which is so beautiful, and saw some of the well-made houses that my great-grandparents & other family members had built with their own hands. These houses are no longer in our family, but it feels good that people still live in & enjoy them. Andi

 

[CRUSADER]

VERY NICE COIN!

Groat Are you sure? That would be very unusual!

 

[jewelerguy]

most excellent!

 

[blugotti1]

man! you guys on the north east have all the great old finds!! nice!!

 

[testing123]

Wow Herbie! Glad you're still getting out there and finding 1600s silver! That mud hunting is rough and you certainly sink fast, but looks like its worth it in the end with what you've pulled out!

 

[Silver Searcher]

Wonderfull coin Herbie should look good up top. More to come me thinks.

SS

 

[Nutriasub]

Herbie! This is banner all the way!!
Big congrats!!

 

[jpmccutc]

Incredible finds!! Congrats

Sent from my iPhone using TreasureNet

 

[CASPER-2]

 

[Silver Tree Chaser]

Congrats on a terrific Mass Silver coin. It looks really well-struck with lots of detail. You must be one happy guy! May I ask, are you searching along a shore line that is salt water, fresh water, or brackish water? That three-pence is banner all the way.

 

[Papa Bear]

Thanks for the history lesson and sharing your find with us.

 

[Erving]

Congrats on an awesome find.

 

[Bubba65]

A BIG CONGRATS to Hebie on a super hunt, just AWESOME!!!!!

Bubba65