🥇 BANNER Revolutionary War "Penobscot Expedition " gold coin found

[Castineman1779]

Hey folks my last post on here was way back in 2013 and sorry 4 being AWOL here. Life happens. Anyway I am in my 23rd year of relic hunting my REv WAr site here in Maine . U may remember me for posting a silver shoe buckle frame I found on the beach that once belonged to Cpt John Hinkley . On the 16th of May was working a hot spot that has produced much American ordnance . Google 'Trask Rock" for a 8 minute video of history in Castine , Maine. Had a great day with finding 4 large grape shot. Spent 5 hours on the hunt and happy with the results. Just dug a pull tab some other THer had left behind and said maybe dig one more target and cal it a day. Deus rang up a 81-82 which usually is a pull tab or shotgun shell. I guess "Shock & Awe" best describes my feelings once I spotted a large bright yellow coin in my discharge dirt. Full guinea .Here u go and may this happen to you. I will answer all questions to as to why I believe lost by a British officer under fire. Enjoy . Gary

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

DR.ÖTEK Metal Detector, Waterproof Gold Detector, Pinpoint & Terrain Modes, Professional Metal Detector - Grab it through Amazon!

[NEPADIGGER7]

Amazing

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

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

[Patriot Relics]

Attribution or not, its a gorgeous colonial gold coin - welcome back to Tnet...and almost certainly the banner!

 

[Sooper Dave]

Absolutely Incredible!

 

[Steve in PA]

That is an amazing find from a historical location. It just don't get any better than that. Colonial gold coins are rare as hens teeth, although there was an Escudo posted a couple months ago that did not make banner for some reason. I'll give this one a banner vote and see what happens.

 

[Castineman1779]

Reanm8er -Thanks for the Nat Geo comments and yes I love to write about Rev WAr history especially from this battle/siege site and been told in my articles for WE&T mag the passion often shows thru in my writings. I mentioned Crusader's comments about maybe seeing finger prints on the coin and took pics after handling it . Very observant of him and being from England could not resist a little THing humor about Scotland Yard . Me am a "Inspector Gadget" kinda guy.LOL. Hope he understood that. Now in retrospect wish I has taken pics as I saw it laying that dirt but in the heat of the moment . I think what he may have seen for prints on it are , when the coin is magnified and a pic taken at the right angle, light abbrazions from being in the ground in a few months for 240 years. I did respond to his email with his comments so others would not think something was amiss here. I have been very fortunate to find many rare relics buttons and coins and some worthy to post on Tnet. So now age 71 on the 29th of May still going strong swinging my Deus and who knows who knows what history remains. I hope a gold coin like this comes under your coil for those of u it being on your "Bucket List." U other folks this has happened to u congrats.
AS for speculation knowing on who and why it was lost I have been a student of this battle for now 23 years. I know this ground well and can tell you after the landing of the Marines and militia the order was given to fire two rounds at the Brits on the high ground then climb the steep bluff and engage them. This was done and when on the flat ground drove the Brits thru this area back to the fort. The coin was no doubt lost by a British officer under fire. Thanks for your comments and appreciate them.Gary

 

[pganjon]

Wow!! That coin is Beautiful!!!! Thanks for sharing! Paul

 

[Castineman1779]

Steve from Pa
Still have not mastered this posting thing . Thanks. I think what is amazing is having this site for all of us to enjoy the thrill and excitement of the finds u guys and gals are showing us. Am glad Mother Earth gave up this historical coin for us to enjoy. BTW STeve man u have found some great and wonderful things yourself. Congrats.

 

[Silvermonkey]

A truly memorable and historic find find Gary! I look forward to reading your next piece in Western Eastern Treasures magazine.

 

[CRUSADER]

Reanm8er -Thanks for the Nat Geo comments and yes I love to write about Rev WAr history especially from this battle/siege site and been told in my articles for WE&T mag the passion often shows thru in my writings. I mentioned Crusader's comments about maybe seeing finger prints on the coin and took pics after handling it . Very observant of him and being from England could not resist a little THing humor about Scotland Yard . Me am a "Inspector Gadget" kinda guy.LOL. Hope he understood that. Now in retrospect wish I has taken pics as I saw it laying that dirt but in the heat of the moment . I think what he may have seen for prints on it are , when the coin is magnified and a pic taken at the right angle, light abbrazions from being in the ground in a few months for 240 years. I did respond to his email with his comments so others would not think something was amiss here. I have been very fortunate to find many rare relics buttons and coins and some worthy to post on Tnet. So now age 71 on the 29th of May still going strong swinging my Deus and who knows who knows what history remains. I hope a gold coin like this comes under your coil for those of u it being on your "Bucket List." U other folks this has happened to u congrats.
AS for speculation knowing on who and why it was lost I have been a student of this battle for now 23 years. I know this ground well and can tell you after the landing of the Marines and militia the order was given to fire two rounds at the Brits on the high ground then climb the steep bluff and engage them. This was done and when on the flat ground drove the Brits thru this area back to the fort. The coin was no doubt lost by a British officer under fire. Thanks for your comments and appreciate them.Gary

No issues here, I understood the humour. Made me laugh. My humour doesn't come across well when written, especially with dyslexia, so I avoid it. It got me in some trouble in my early Tnet days.

 

[Castineman1779]

Gold guinea

No issues here, I understood the humour. Made me laugh. My humour doesn't come across well when written, especially with dyslexia, so I avoid it. It got me in some trouble in my early Tnet days.

Crusader- Thanks for understanding my attempt at humor. I think maybe in this crazy world we all live in now a little humor is good therapy. My roots being an Edgecomb are from England who settled in the Saco Bay region of Maine. For years always wanted to take one of those tours and relic hunt true early history of your country. Raised a family, put n 28 years in the Army protecting the freedoms well fought for long ago and in a few days, on Memorial Day next Monday travel to Castine as I have hundreds of times before in search of history. However that special day I often sit above Trask Rock where a one morning battle happened on the 28th of JUly 1779 and pay my respects to the brave American's that fought for freedom and your brave Brits that fought for King & Country and gave their lives . Should we all never forget. Leaving u with a little cannon ball humor. Remember "Lipstick on a pig". How about a big smile on a French 6 pounder found in April and my first find of 2019.Woops hope am not offending some French guys and gals on here. Yes the majic marker came off ok. NOw that my friends is Thing humor. Sorry about this long read. Gary

 

[Megalodon]

This is a fascinating story and discussion. I agree with you that the guinea would have belonged to an officer who may have lost it during the chaos of battle. I'm not convinced that it was his pay or rather his personal property brought over from England. Have you found records of British officers either killed or wounded in that battle? Were the American forces regular "continentals" or militia? I'm not aware of regulars specifically targeting British officers. Whether this was due to the belief that leadership was needed on the field, or that smoothbore muskets just lacked the accuracy to try for officers, rather than massed fire, I don't know. Militia bringing longrifles to battle could have targeted officers but I believe it was still a rare thing, though more common in guerilla fighting than among regulars. Looking forward to more information and discussion. Thank you for your service and also for this history lesson.

 

[Castineman1779]

Silvermonkey
Thank u for your comments. Since I went AWOL from Tnet went thu some marriage issues but now back in my native state of Maine. In my hunts for the seasons 2017 and 2018 at my site I was fortunate to find and write about them in 2 articles for WE&T. One published in April 2017 called "The Buckle and the Boulder" mainly about Cpt John Hinkley's silver shoe buckle frame featured on Tnet I think in 2014 I found near TRask Rock and the 2nd "In Search of the British 74th" in JUly 2018 . If u r a subscriber to WE&T u probably read them but if not can upload here or better yet send me an email and can send to u. Don't want to be a Tnet hog posting a lot of stuff.Never hunted in Mass however until 1820 Maine was under Mass in the American REvolution. Thanks and happy hunting and keep an eye out for those ticks my friend. Not me in the pic as will never be like a 6 footer. MOre like a tall Frenchman at 5 Ft 6 inches before a haircut. LOL .G

 

[Castineman1779]

Megalogon
Thanks for your comments and questions. Unless you have studied this battle /Siege in Castine called "The Penobscot Expedition" many will speculate if a Brit of American officer lost this coin. The British took great records of those killed and wounded and submitted them after the battle to their higher command. The American's had a total loss of their shipping with no records of who died. It was estimated about 500 and many perished in the wilderness of Maine(MASS) on there way back to civilization. It was a total humiliating defeat for them with 30 officers before they left Castine, then Bagaduce that requested court martials for both the Commadore and Lt Col. Paul Revere for cowardness. The American's were militia and untrained fisherman and farmers gathered up for this expedition in route . Old men and young boys that had little if any battle experience. AS for taking out the officers maybe early in the war that was not done but later changed . Even today take out the brass and often the battle is won. In Vietnam officers soon learned not to salute or wear gold rank on their uniforms. Common soldiers are common but officers r not. Saluting was often certain death from a snipers bullet for both the officer and the enlistedman . Lesions learned in WAr can be costly. In this 20 minute skirmish there were about 100 Marines with some military training. All officers were not trained in military tactics . Before making any more speculation think best to Google "Penobscot Expedition" "Trask Rock" and " Assault at Penobscot" to give u a better understanding what took place in this 3 week siege in JUly and August of 1779. I leave u with a rero painting done by my son originally painted by Charles WAterhouse in the 1960s. These were Marines on the right flank with militia on the left and center. It hung in the Pentagon until destroyed in 911. Thanks for your thanks on my service and we as a country will pay our respects to the fallen on Memorial Day coming up Monday. I thank u all or your service as well. U r all my " Band of Brothers & Sisters" and I render u a hand salute . Gary

 

[Silver Tree Chaser]

Now I have to out this weekend for some swing time. Fantastic recovery of a colonial period gold coin. How can one not vote banner on such an awesome find Your find is an inspiration!

 

[Castineman1779]

Silver Tree Chaser
Thanks and except for maybe diving don't know of another hobby where u can leave your house in the morning, get some good exercise , get away from often the rat race of life and often be n 7th heaven finding a "Bucket List " find. Not anything else like it my friend. Evidenced by that stunning Mass coin of yours . Found mine many years ago while looking for cannon balls on the shore where the Brits cannonaded Paul REvere's artillery. Found a Brit 4 pounder , next target a musket ball then the last and a shocker 1752 Oak tree . Man that was indeed a great day. May u find this weekend a true rarity like the Mass u found. Gary

 

[Megalodon]

Thank you Gary for suggesting further reading about this battle. I have been reading since your post. I had no idea that it was not only the largest American naval expedition of the war, but also referred by historians as the worst American naval defeat until Pearl Harbor (which is not really a valid comparison IMO because Pearl was an act of surprise and treachery). Funny how the topical history we learned was so kind to Paul Revere after reading about this fiasco.

I never read Cornwell's historical novels, but I reserved "The Fort" today at my local library. They also have it on cd which I'll get for my next long drive.

I used to fish upstream from there and have fond memories of the beautiful salmon and brook trout (but not the black flies) caught on the West Branch - 46 to 50 years ago. My fishing buddy and I would stop at LL Bean on the way in the middle of the night, long before it was cool. I still have my Maine hunting shoes bought on one of those trips in 1969 and still occasionally wear them - they have had new rubber bottoms attached to the original leather uppers a few times!

Thanks again and wish you the best at Memorial Day. Cheers, Rick

 

[Castineman1779]

Rick
Yes the battle is indeed referenced as 2nd to that of Pearl Harbor and probably due to the great loss of a complete fleet put together for this expedition plus the loss of an estimated 500 patriots. I was said pretty well emptied the coffers in Mass . I think most folks here, not knowing the battle are assuming this officer that lost this coin was killed on the retreat back to Fort George. I don't know for sure if thst is fact but do know he was as when going thru the bush in retreat buttons and especially shoe buckles are lost . I suspect the coin was in a purse and on the run most likely lost and the cloth material rotted away. Again only speculation on that as well. It is doubtful however any militia officer would be paid and bring hard money with him on this expedition. Also remember the Brits paid in hard money but the American's late in the war often got paper . On Memorial Day I make the now hour trip to Castine. Walk out to the top of that flat ground overlooking "Trask Rock " 150 feet below and remember the Americans who died that morning scaling the Heights buried feet from where I sit in unmarked graves. . Been a tradition for years as an old combat soldier to pay my respect to them. BTW I think Cornwall's book is mainly a piece of fiction. There r things in it no one could ever know . Embellished ? Yes. The Penobscot Expedition" by John Cayford written in 1976 is my bible. Paul Revere was only made famous by a relative of his in the poem . "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere. REvere never completed that mission and was one of 40 paid riders to boot. Longfelow lied." History can be misleading. Yes shocking I know.Good luck THing my friend. Gary

 

[MAILITY]

If it was indeed a battle ground loss, it may have been the result of a horrific injury.
Heavy ordnance probably scattered everything in its way.

Gold has a tendency of sometimes coming out of the ground like it was lost yesterday.

May have been more than one coin Xender Discord Omegle in his pockets.

that is one incredible piece of gold. I'd love to hear your theory as to how the coin was lost, and also why you think the coin had not previously been found after all these years of detecting?

 

[Ahab8]

that is one incredible piece of gold. I'd love to hear your theory as to how the coin was lost, and also why you think the coin had not previously been found after all these years of detecting?

Hi MAILITY,
I don’t want to speak for anybody else but this is a huge area in a very difficult place to hunt. I live in Maine and am familiar with this area. It’s some extremely difficult terrain and it would be easy to miss these things. The other thing that I and many others have learned over the years is that these sites just continue to give up their treasures decade after decade. Even a small site that you believe is “hunted out” is truly never hunted out. Things shift in the ground, erosion takes place, the freezing and thawing in the northeast pushes things up, turns things from edge to flat and vice versa. You can swing the same spot several times and finally just swing it from a slightly different angle and get that signal. When you consider the massive area that Gary is hunting it’s easy to understand why this has been missed over the years. I can assure you there’s still lots of amazing buttons, coins and other amazing Rev relics sitting in that dirt. Each and every year the earth and detecting gods will allow some lucky soul to pull out a few more.

 

[Ahab8]

Thank you Gary for suggesting further reading about this battle. I have been reading since your post. I had no idea that it was not only the largest American naval expedition of the war, but also referred by historians as the worst American naval defeat until Pearl Harbor (which is not really a valid comparison IMO because Pearl was an act of surprise and treachery). Funny how the topical history we learned was so kind to Paul Revere after reading about this fiasco.

I never read Cornwell's historical novels, but I reserved "The Fort" today at my local library. They also have it on cd which I'll get for my next long drive.

I used to fish upstream from there and have fond memories of the beautiful salmon and brook trout (but not the black flies) caught on the West Branch - 46 to 50 years ago. My fishing buddy and I would stop at LL Bean on the way in the middle of the night, long before it was cool. I still have my Maine hunting shoes bought on one of those trips in 1969 and still occasionally wear them - they have had new rubber bottoms attached to the original leather uppers a few times!

Thanks again and wish you the best at Memorial Day. Cheers, Rick

It’s addicting once you start reading about this failed and blunderous expedition. It’s amazing that we are never taught about some of these important moments in our history. Living in Maine my entire life and being in Maine history classes I had never learned anything about this. History is a messy and often very inaccurate string of stories passed down. When I started really studying the local history of midcoast Maine it didn’t take long to understand this too was quite inaccurate. I have gone in search of several sites that history said to be in one place but after a lot of effort and thinking outside the box found to be in a very different location. Gary has basically dedicated his life to learning about the true story of what happened on the shores of Castine. I have a ton of respect for that type of dedication and passion.
Btw I live about 15 minutes from LL Bean and enjoyed your story about the Maine trips. Take care Rick,
Abe