Pine Tree Shilling

[Upham]

Ever since I was a kid I've wanted a metal detector. I used to work at Bass Pro and about three years ago I spotted a Tectonics 4000 in the store and bought it. I took it out a couple times in the yard really didn't know what I was doing. I knew where there was a very old granite quarry way out in the wood and decided I would metal detect it. I found shotgun shells, old metal fence posts tin cans. I soon realized I had to get going because I had to go to work. So I bee lined it through the woods swinging the detector at the same time. I got a nice tone knelt down and dug up some really thin piece that I thought was the cap of a champagne bottle so I stuffed it in my pocket and high tailed it back to my truck. When I got to my truck I emptied my pocket and took a better look at my find and still had no idea what it was. I have a buddy that did some metal detecting so I sent him a picture and asked if he knew what it was and he called me some bad names said I was a liar and that I didn't find it, I was just teasing because I knew he wanted to find one of them. Still not knowing what I had I told him I just dug it out of the ground. He wanted to meet me and look at it so we met at BPS and thats when he told me it was a pinetree shilling. I had no idea!
I took it to a coin show and had a couple coin dealers and they thought it was worth somewhere in the vacinity of $2500 to $7000. They said I should have it appraised. I sent it to PCGS and when all was said and done I paid $350 for them to tell me it was genuine, it has very fine details and it was environmentally damaged and wouldn't appraise it. I love this coin, it is an important part of our history. I will never sell it and it will some day belong to my grand son who I hope will value it as much as I do. I doubt I will ever top this find but I keep on trying.

 

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[smokeythecat]

I looked at the PCGS website just now. A coin identified in their "rarieties" category costs $300 plus 1% of the coin value. That may be what they did.

 

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[eyemustdigtreasure]

Sure there's been other examples of this coin found, but you did very well....!
Wow!
What a thrill and honor to find one of our country's earliest coins...!

 

[haility]

What a beautiful Mass Silver! NOE 16? I don’t have my book in front of me but I believe that’s the variety. Unlike you I had been staring at these coins in books and studying the history of them. When I made my lifetime wish list a Mass silver was at the top of that list. I remember the day I pulled mine out of the dirt so vividly....I felt like I was floating lol. An incredible feeling indeed. I would be heading back to that area and hunting every square inch. Congrats on such an incredible example. They don’t get better than that. As Smokey mentioned once you get into the age, rarity and desirability of these types of coins that Environmental Damage tag has little to no effect.

I soon realized I had to get going because I had to go to work. So I bee lined it through the woods swinging the detector at the same time. I got a nice tone knelt down and dug up some really thin piece that I thought was the cap of a champagne bottle so I stuffed it in my pocket and high tailed it back to my truck. When I got to my truck I emptied my pocket and took a better look at my find and still had no idea what it was. I have a buddy that did some metal detecting so I sent him a picture and asked if he knew what it was and he called me some bad names said I was a liar and that I didn't find it, I was just teasing because I knew he wanted to find one of them. Still not knowing what I had I told him I just dug it out of the ground.

 

[MAILITY]

I soon realized I had to get going because I had to go to work. So I bee lined it through the woods swinging the detector at the same time. I got a nice tone knelt down and dug up some really thin piece that I thought was the Xender Discord Omegle cap of a champagne bottle so I stuffed it in my pocket and high tailed it back to my truck. When I got to my truck I emptied my pocket and took a better look at my find and still had no idea what it was. I have a buddy that did some metal detecting so I sent him a picture and asked if he knew what it was and he called me some bad names said I was a liar and that I didn't find it, I was just teasing because I knew he wanted to find one of them. Still not knowing what I had I told him I just dug it out of the ground.

What a beautiful Mass Silver! NOE 16? I don’t have my book in front of me but I believe that’s the variety. Unlike you I had been staring at these coins in books and studying the history of them. When I made my lifetime wish list a Mass silver was at the top of that list. I remember the day I pulled mine out of the dirt so vividly....I felt like I was floating lol. An incredible feeling indeed. I would be heading back to that area and hunting every square inch. Congrats on such an incredible example. They don’t get better than that. As Smokey mentioned once you get into the age, rarity and desirability of these types of coins that Environmental Damage tag has little to no effect.

 

[BenFrankOG]

Incredible find! Very awesome you are keeping it in your family as well. I still own my grandfathers coins. They will stay in my family as well.

 

[Upham]

Incredible find! Very awesome you are keeping it in your family as well. I still own my grandfathers coins. They will stay in my family as well.

That’s awesome!

 

[E-Trac-Ohio]

One of the greatest finds there is - congrats !