Half dollar size Silver something?

[Diggin Dude]

Went for a short after work hunt to my new "hotspot", wasn't finding much tonight just clad, Wheaties, Jefferson nickels, and pull tabs, until I got a 1247 target ID on my CTX 3030. I was excited when this came out of the ground. Then the excitement faded when I couldn't make out any detail.

It appears to be the size of a half dollar and has the same tarnish color as all of the silver coins I recovered from the site. One side has some type of milky crust on it. Looks like something that was turned into a metal?

Enjoy the photos

 

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[TRanegar36]

I'm no coin expert, but there looks to be a shield in the first pic. Seated?

 

[smokeythecat]

I can almost see something there too.

 

[Diggin Dude]

I'm no coin expert, but there looks to be a shield in the first pic. Seated?

In photo I can see what you're talking about but there's actually grains of sand imbedded in the tarnished crust and there is a line possibly a head but it's actually bent, scratched and dented it looks just like a solid disc now I don't think we'll ever find out what it was. I'll try cleaning it up, it won't hurt anything.

Thanks for your comment

 

[Diggin Dude]

I can almost see something there too.

After looking at it for over an hour all different directions with different magnifying glasses and from far away it's all just scratches give the illusion of Coin details.

I appreciate you looking at photos and commenting. Still a nice hunk a silver though.

 

[TRanegar36]

I know Tabman cleans his silver with Bar Keepers Friend & micro fiber cloth.... maybe give that a try

Never used it on a coin before, but it does one hell of a job on my sinks!

 

[ajaj]

Curiouser and curiouser. Have you tested it for silver?

aj

 

[against the wind]

Nice find dude,,
Because of the double holes on each end, it might have been a decorative piece for a saddle or holster.
Congrats

 

[trapperart]

Congrats on a nice find

 

[Diggin Dude]

Cleaned it aluminum foil/boiling distilled water and baking soda method, had to do it 3 times, looks like silver to me, but eventually I'll have it tested. Here's a couple of pics cleaned, quarter for size reference. Thanks for comments and cleaning tips, I do think it's very old. HH

 

[bigfoot1]

looks like a homemade whizzer toy to me.cool find !!!

 

[Subterranean]

Great point bigfoot1, or could it be a Native American gorget made from an old silver coin or token? Sub

 

[can]

Great point bigfoot1, or could it be a Native American gorget made from an old silver coin or token? Sub

That was my first impression. but who knows. Nice find

 

[Carolina Tom]

The rim looks really pronounced... such a big rim, but no coin details at all... makes me think, it's not a coin.

Double holes make me think that it might have been sewed to something.

Nice find DD.

 

[Diggin Dude]

The rim looks really pronounced... such a big rim, but no coin details at all... makes me think, it's not a coin.

Double holes make me think that it might have been sewed to something.

Nice find DD.

I agree Tom, I'm not sure if the rim was a separate piece, this thing is been tumbling in the water in the sand and rocks for years so if it had detail it's not there anymore.

Here's another photo of the rim

 

[Diggin Dude]

Great point bigfoot1, or could it be a Native American gorget made from an old silver coin or token? Sub

I also believe that is a possibility thank you for your reply and thank you Bigfoot for your input also.

 

[testing123]

what does it weigh? Sometimes aluminum can ring in that high in certain shapes.

 

[Scrappy]

I agree Tom, I'm not sure if the rim was a separate piece, this thing is been tumbling in the water in the sand and rocks for years so if it had detail it's not there anymore.

Here's another photo of the rim

View attachment 1317500

I don't know if anyone else sees it but that edge looks very interesting. Can you provide several shots of it? See any pattern? A Reeded edge would make things real interesting

 

[Diggin Dude]

what does it weigh? Sometimes aluminum can ring in that high in certain shapes.

Here is the weight: 160 g

The weight of a walking liberty is 190 g
The weight of a Franklin half-dollar is 190 g

Now the outside rim appears to be the same width as a half-dollar but the inside is thinner so it would weigh less. I have a silver tester on order with Amazon I'll test it when it arrives and post the results.

 

[Diggin Dude]

I don't know if anyone else sees it but that edge looks very interesting. Can you provide several shots of it? See any pattern? A Reeded edge would make things real interesting

Hey scrappy thanks for replying. Here are a couple more pictures of the rim, I see no pattern just very dented. If you notice in the picture though, the rim is worn thinner in the area of the holes like there was a string attached or something that wore away the metal.