Exciting Finds in Massachusetts -- 1683 Property

[btjbtj]

Hi everyone, I have a bunch of photos to post. I had to apply a bit of oil on some of the coins in order to see and photograph the silhouettes. I'm curious whether coins in this poor of condition are worth bothering with? I mean, we won't throw them away, but I guess there's no making them any better. As you can guess--we're having great difficulty identifying them, so if anyone recognizes anything, please let us know. Our coolest find today was a Real. It looks to be 1774? I can't quite find a match because the IND(?) letters are on the opposite side of the photos online. Nice condition, but since we haven't tried to clean it, it's somewhat difficult to make out. We found several buttons today, and the one with the huge looped shank has writing on the front of it, but we are afraid to clean it because it's pewter. Anyway, here are a bunch of photos. If I'm posting too much at one time, please let me know! Thanks, all. ~Lisa & John

 

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[BigWaveDave]

I know what a few of them are.

 

[btjbtj]

Darn...the buttons photo on the left posted upside down. Sorry! ~L&J

 

[ScubaDetector]

I know what a few of them are.

It sure would be nice of you to enlighten us that don"t!!

Looks like a whole lot of old coins though. SWEET. I would be happy to dig that stuff and try to preserve it so it doesn't deteriorate anymore. Nice

 

[Dirtwisher]

Awesome finds! What part of MA are you in? I'm on the south shore of Boston. Took the summer off but ready to start up again and battle some corn stalks.

 

[OutdoorAdv]

You guys are finding some incredible stuff Those coppers are pretty toasty, but I'm seeing a KGI and a KGII. You guys seem to have skipped right to the early stuff at this fantastic property.

Here are a couple cleaning/preservation tips, just in case you don't already know all this. It was mentioned in one of your other threads, but for the most part, until you get preservation techniques down, less is more. So don't worry about leaving something dirty until you figure out what to do with it. Pewter is the exception because it can dry out and flake. Pewter can be stabilized by watering down some elmers glue and soaking the pewter (button in this case) and letting it dry. Its reversible since elmers is water soluble. Some pewters I will rinse and roll a q-tip with some Aluminum Jelly (mildly acidic) on it across the face of the button. This will lift off the dirt, then the jelly is neutralized with some dish soap before getting watered down elmers glue.

Remember, water is a cleaning method too! When it comes to toasty coppers, unless the base metal is solid, don't even rinse it with water. Even if the copper is solid, many times I wont rinse it. A lot of what detail is left on the copper can get washed away with the patina that can flake off in water. Since you can never undo a preservation method, I'll typically start with a toothpick and pick the dirt away, then lightly dry brush it with a soft toothbrush. That leaves dirt in the low points and creates contrast with the relief that's left. That's the least invasive method for copper coins and you can always clean it more later on. I'd probably leave that Spanish Silver as is for now.

A very knowledgeable member has a great post on button cleaning http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/cleaning-preservation/89045-how-clean-buttons.html There is a lot of other good info in the cleaning and preservation section.

You guys are killing it though! Hope that helps a little bit. There is much more to learn, but that will come with time. For the most part, less is more though and you can always clean more later on.

 

[BigWaveDave]

It sure would be nice of you to enlighten us that don"t!!

Sorry Scuba....
The op asked for ID for a find a couple weeks ago....and I nailed it....but all I got was crickets.

 

[ScubaDetector]

Sorry Scuba....
The op asked for ID for a find a couple weeks ago....and I nailed it....but all I got was crickets.

Ahh, thank you for the explanation. Absolutely no fun when you help and crickets attack.

 

[port ewen ace]

more stunning loot. just a tip: shoot photos in 1600 X 1200 resolution with a tripod in daylight so we can get HQ details in full screen, neutral background color. I will send a drone to your dig site to drop some skunks & vampire bats to run you off :---). the lame twins of Oak Island got nuttin' on you---they hunt treasure______you find treasure

 

[trapperart]

Congrats on some very nice old finds

 

[btjbtj]

Dave--not intentional, I assure you! Forgive a Newbie. Now I'm going to pull my hair out stomping on crickets till I find your reply and respond!

QUOTE=BigWaveDave;5115891]Sorry Scuba....
The op asked for ID for a find a couple weeks ago....and I nailed it....but all I got was crickets.[/QUOTE]

 

[btjbtj]

Hi Dirt, John's site is on the NH border, but I am also on the South Shore. Howdy neighbor! Thanks for your reply. -Lisa

QUOTE=Dirtwisher;5115878]Awesome finds! What part of MA are you in? I'm on the south shore of Boston. Took the summer off but ready to start up again and battle some corn stalks.[/QUOTE]

 

[btjbtj]

Thanks, Trapper! We're still hoping for a GW button or some...Gold!! -L&J

Congrats on some very nice old finds

 

[btjbtj]

Ha!! The skunks will be chased off by two goofy pit bulls, and the vampire...well...looks like we'll have to buy a whole lot of garlic, hehehee! Good one, Ewan! I don't have that type of camera equipment, but perhaps we should look into some better photographing equipment. Thanks again! -Lisa & John

more stunning loot. just a tip: shoot photos in 1600 X 1200 resolution with a tripod in daylight so we can get HQ details in full screen, neutral background color. I will send a drone to your dig site to drop some skunks & vampire bats to run you off :---). the lame twins of Oak Island got nuttin' on you---they hunt treasure______you find treasure

 

[btjbtj]

Outdoor, thanks once again for sharing your knowledge and enthusiasm! Great advice! We seriously need to get some better storage supplies for this stuff as well. Ziplock just aren't enough! -L&J

You guys are finding some incredible stuff Those coppers are pretty toasty, but I'm seeing a KGI and a KGII. You guys seem to have skipped right to the early stuff at this fantastic property.

Here are a couple cleaning/preservation tips, just in case you don't already know all this. It was mentioned in one of your other threads, but for the most part, until you get preservation techniques down, less is more. So don't worry about leaving something dirty until you figure out what to do with it. Pewter is the exception because it can dry out and flake. Pewter can be stabilized by watering down some elmers glue and soaking the pewter (button in this case) and letting it dry. Its reversible since elmers is water soluble. Some pewters I will rinse and roll a q-tip with some Aluminum Jelly (mildly acidic) on it across the face of the button. This will lift off the dirt, then the jelly is neutralized with some dish soap before getting watered down elmers glue.

Remember, water is a cleaning method too! When it comes to toasty coppers, unless the base metal is solid, don't even rinse it with water. Even if the copper is solid, many times I wont rinse it. A lot of what detail is left on the copper can get washed away with the patina that can flake off in water. Since you can never undo and preservation method, I'll typically start with a toothpick and pick the dirt away, then lightly dry brush it with a soft toothbrush. That leaves dirt in the low points and creates contrast with the relief that's left. That's the least invasive method for copper coins and you can always clean it more later on. I'd probably leave that Spanish Silver as is for now.

A very knowledgeable member has a great post on button cleaning http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/cleaning-preservation/89045-how-clean-buttons.html There is a lot of other good info in the cleaning and preservation section.

You guys are killing it though! Hope that helps a little bit. There is much more to learn, but that will come with time. For the most part, less is more though and you can always clean more later on.

 

[Iron Patch]

You got another George I Halfpenny. Looks like the 2nd issue, 1719-1724.

 

[btjbtj]

Thanks, Scuba, we are researching what to do to preserve coins. There seem to be a lot of opinions on whether to do anything to them at all, so it's difficult to decide! BTW, I've been loving your posts--you find such treasures in the water! Makes me want to try scuba diving! L&J

QUOTE=ScubaDetector;5115877]It sure would be nice of you to enlighten us that don"t!!

Looks like a whole lot of old coins though. SWEET. I would be happy to dig that stuff and try to preserve it so it doesn't deteriorate anymore. Nice[/QUOTE]

 

[btjbtj]

Iron, you rock! Thanks! We are ordering a book on Spanish, Itish, UK coins to help us out. -L & D

You got another George I Halfpenny. Looks like the 2nd issue, 1719-1724.

 

[CASPER-2]

 

[btjbtj]

Thanks, Casper! -L&J

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