Im Back...With My Best Coin Yet

[Brendan M.]

I'm Back...With My Best Coin Yet

Hello everyone! Long time!

As some of you know, I moved off Long Island last year, and headed upstate; I'm just outside of Lake George these days, and have been working hard to learn the new spots and do the research. After some minor wins last year (1-pound cannon ball, handful of musket balls) it's been really heating up for me lately, and yesterday I made my best coin find to date.

I was hunting some pretty dense woods that run along an old military road here that was used during the French & Indian War, close to several battle/ambush sites. I got one of those weird hunches to turn left instead of right, and about two feet after changing direction I hit a nice dime-type signal with my DFX. It was really shallow -- only about an inch and a half -- so I used my hands to brush away the dirt (didn't even bother digging), so you can imagine my surprise when a pristine 1724F 2 Reale "Cross Pistareen" popped up!

The detail on it is pretty fantastic. Although I'd like to think it was dropped during one of the battles there in 1755, I just don't know if it would've withstood 31 years of circulation and still be in the condition it's in today. But at any rate, it's now the oldest silver I've found (prior record holder was my 1738 1 Reale Pistareen) and is tied with my 1724 Charles II halfpenny as my oldest coin overall. Not a bad day of hunting!

 

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[Daddio53]

Re: I'm Back...With My Best Coin Yet

12 years short of 300 years old, and it looks like any other coin in a pocket of change. What a great find. I envy you folks on the east coast where there is so much older history. Here in Colorado, we are like 100 years "younger" and with very little Civil War history, we would be lucky to find what people east of the big muddy find regularly. There is no French anything to be found here, and very little of anything else that you all could find there. We do have meteorites and gold to find, including some mom and pop type of private mints with very unique coins that when/if found are quite valuable, and some Indian and Union troop finds possible, but this land was vast and people and incidents were very much spread out. I've found Civil War Era slugs and a cannon ball that made me hungry for their history. I found nothing to back up these finds, but it's nice to get the mind all fired up once in a while. My strangest find was a large British penny in my front yard 4 inches deep. I'm guessing it was a show and tell item that the kid dropped on the way home. All that sdaid, congrats on your silver find. I am right about at "covet" on this one.n

 

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[Gunrunner61]

Re: I'm Back...With My Best Coin Yet

WOW!!!!!!!!....That had to be dropped just after the mint was through with it.....GREAT coin BEAUTIFULL

 

[franking]

Re: I'm Back...With My Best Coin Yet

Brendan- what an excellent find.. Congrats - n- welcome back.

 

[steelheadwill]

Re: I'm Back...With My Best Coin Yet

Thanks everyone! Yeah you can imagine my shock and the ensuing exclamations I uttered. I was figuring it was a quarter from the 1940s dropped by a hiker or something.

Good looking coin.

I've never understood how the woods keep things so shallow, but they do

Crusader, my particular theory here is recent soil erosion. This was a sloping hillside, and there was some major flooding during the recent hurricane. That could account for a couple less inches of depth...

Had 100 year items under the leaf litter on flat ground I could only think of replanting activity

Outstanding Old Spanish
I found a few oldies just under the leaves...
generally items with a large surface area (buckle frames, large coins)
in areas with a dense fine rootmass on the surface.

 

[donny nj]

Re: I'm Back...With My Best Coin Yet

Lots of history in that area....nice find .........keep searching Im sure there's more in those woods!

 

[Whitebeard]

Re: I'm Back...With My Best Coin Yet

Great find in extra condition! found a french sword of that era on banks of St.Lawrence a few years back, it has gold inlay near pommel (pommel missing) and did research,according to markings it belonged to a high rank officer, some markings on it I couldn't find so will be posting pictures and info I found in "trading post" section in a week or so. HH

Whitebeard

 

[Joe G]

Re: I'm Back...With My Best Coin Yet

Is very strange ..... the silver coins more than 200 years create a black patina very difficult to clean .... even some people have to use electrochemical techniques to clean ... but you coin appeared completely brilliant and superficially .

In spite of all, congratulations on the Banner!
H

H,

I understand your suspicion to a degree; I guess all I can do is give you my word that this coin came straight from the ground. The final pics you see are after minimal cleaning -- just a quick rinse under the faucet and a smidge of dish soap. The silver has not been polished at all.

I haven't posted on this board in quite some time because to be honest, I haven't had a lot of luck over the last two years. Between moving and being a father to a small boy, I haven't had a ton of time to hunt. This was the first major find I've had in quite a while, which is why I shared this with everyone. I have no desire or need to brag on TNet or to scam my way onto the banner, and "planting" a bought coin isn't something that would even occur to me. Please take my word on that. There are others on this board who can vouch for me.

As for the comments about silver turning black, I've never found a blackened silver. That sounds more like silver coins plucked from the ocean, and not the soil.

HH,
B

I've hunted with Brendan on numerous occasions... His researching ability is simply amazing and he's been kind enough in the past to even share his "secret" spots with me (although only after he's dug them clean ). No way he would do a "plant"; that's just ludicrous. I'm shocked that this was even suggested...

 

[Brendan M.]

Re: I'm Back...With My Best Coin Yet

Is very strange ..... the silver coins more than 200 years create a black patina very difficult to clean .... even some people have to use electrochemical techniques to clean ... but you coin appeared completely brilliant and superficially .

In spite of all, congratulations on the Banner!
H

H,

I understand your suspicion to a degree; I guess all I can do is give you my word that this coin came straight from the ground. The final pics you see are after minimal cleaning -- just a quick rinse under the faucet and a smidge of dish soap. The silver has not been polished at all.

I haven't posted on this board in quite some time because to be honest, I haven't had a lot of luck over the last two years. Between moving and being a father to a small boy, I haven't had a ton of time to hunt. This was the first major find I've had in quite a while, which is why I shared this with everyone. I have no desire or need to brag on TNet or to scam my way onto the banner, and "planting" a bought coin isn't something that would even occur to me. Please take my word on that. There are others on this board who can vouch for me.

As for the comments about silver turning black, I've never found a blackened silver. That sounds more like silver coins plucked from the ocean, and not the soil.

HH,
B

I've hunted with Brendan on numerous occasions... His researching ability is simply amazing and he's been kind enough in the past to even share his "secret" spots with me (although only after he's dug them clean ). No way he would do a "plant"; that's just ludicrous. I'm shocked that this was even suggested...

Thanks very much, Joe. That's very kind of you to say. I miss our hunts together! You gotta come visit the North Country!

 

[SeatedorBust]

Re: I'm Back...With My Best Coin Yet

God i love to see finds like this! Wow.

 

[BOB@NORTHEASTMETALDETECT]

I'm back

Hello everyone! Long time!

As some of you know, I moved off Long Island last year, and headed upstate; I'm just outside of Lake George these days, and have been working hard to learn the new spots and do the research. After some minor wins last year (1-pound cannon ball, handful of musket balls) it's been really heating up for me lately, and yesterday I made my best coin find to date.

I was hunting some pretty dense woods that run along an old military road here that was used during the French & Indian War, close to several battle/ambush sites. I got one of those weird hunches to turn left instead of right, and about two feet after changing direction I hit a nice dime-type signal with my DFX. It was really shallow -- only about an inch and a half -- so I used my hands to brush away the dirt (didn't even bother digging), so you can imagine my surprise when a pristine 1724F 2 Reale "Cross Pistareen" popped up!

The detail on it is pretty fantastic. Although I'd like to think it was dropped during one of the battles there in 1755, I just don't know if it would've withstood 31 years of circulation and still be in the condition it's in today. But at any rate, it's now the oldest silver I've found (prior record holder was my 1738 1 Reale Pistareen) and is tied with my 1724 Charles II halfpenny as my oldest coin overall. Not a bad day of hunting!

Hi brandon--looks like were hunting in the same area in lake george. the military trails. i recovered a 1721 in similar condition in same area. i think we talked once. bob@northeast

 

[BOB@NORTHEASTMETALDETECT]

on the subject of black Spanish reales. i find many in upstate ny that are black in color but find many that come out of the ground in great shape with no stains. it all depends on the mineralization of the soil. farm fields are typically the worst with the fertilizers. in saratoga lake they all come out black because they use copper sulfate to kill weeds over the years. in Lake George they seem to come out with no stains. it's a very clear body of water.-thanks bob@northeast

 

[hamiddetecting]

Nice!!

 

[Wildcat1750]

You are back with style. Looks like upstate NY is treating you well. That must have gotten your heart pounding!
Nick

 

[Deckguy]

Awesome find and u didn't even have to work hard, even sweeter!!!

 

[leaker]

just a great find, one to be proud of if you never go out agin, this will be very hard to top, good luck and good hunting.

 

[wheatfinder13]

That's neat