Don in SJ
Silver Member
- Joined
- May 20, 2005
- Messages
- 4,937
- Reaction score
- 852
- Golden Thread
- 0
- Detector(s) used
- MINELAB SE Pro
- Primary Interest:
- All Treasure Hunting
This morning I finally got out after what seemed like weeks of yard work and despite the ole back not doing so well, I did a nice hike to a homestead I found a few years ago, hit it twice, but only ever found a couple pewter buttons and tombacs, no coins or other notable artifacts.
This homestead is not a detectorist friendly type, it fools you, as you approach it the site looks very clean, hardly any underbrush
However, with this being my third hunt there, I did not really find any artifacts in the clear area, the depression which indicates a homestead location is on the edge of a big green briar and underbrush area in the far right of the photo.
So, this morning was one of those hunts where I had hand pruners in one hand and the detector in the other and had to cut green briar in order to swing and walk. My first target was a cuff sized tombac button and it appeared to be next to a very old overgrown path/road and next to it was a raised area that I now think was the homestead itself and that the depresion hole about 20 feet away was an outbuilding of some type. I got a decent reading on the edge of this raised area and soon retrieved a very large round disk that reminded me of a Wm H Harrison Presidential medal I found years ago, made of white metal/pewter.
Sure enough, as I held it in my hand I could see a bust that looked just like my other medal, but this one sure looked like George Washington!
Not knowing for sure, I put the coin in a envelop with some moist dirt in hopes of preserving the crumbling edges. I continued hunting, but now I was thinking, wonder if it is a GW Indian Peace medal? Well, dream on Don, it was not to be.
About 10 feet from where the GW came out of the ground, I got a no doubt about it coin reading, a little better than the GW reading which despite being white metal gave a quite high tone on the SE. But this one was a coin and sure enough, a small thick copper emerged.
I had no idea for sure what the coin was, heavily encrusted and looked worn but it was a small planchet and very thick, so I knew it would not be a KG copper of any sort, but it would have to wait for ID till I got home and cleaned it.
I continued hunting for about another 45 minutes, getting a couple of what is its and a pewter spoon handle section, and two seperate pieces of shoe buckle.
So, once home, I put the GW medal in water, and the other stuff in peroxide, I let a few friends know of what I might have found and one, Kirk, found an article with a photo of one that matched my GW.
It seems that my medal is a 1797 George Washington medal for sure!
But now I wanted to know what was written on the back since I could only make out fragmented parts of what was there. Iron Patch helped and found an example of what I found and now I feel pretty good finding another piece of valued history to add to my collection.
Here is the medal I found and I put it next to the photos of the one IP found online so you can read what it says.
Here is a short blurp what is said about this medal:
1797 Washington Presidency Resigned medal. Baker-66. White metal. Plain edge. 383.7 grains. 37.5 mm. A scarce 18th-century medal by Wyon commemorating Washington's yielding of presidential power to John Adams in 1797. Medium pewter gray . Struck on a thick planchet (3.3 mm at the rim) An important historical medal
Last but not least and this alone would have made my hunt a success, my 5th NJ copper for this year! Hard to believe for even me, but sure enough that thick little copper I found turned out to be a well worn, but identifiable 1787 NJ Maris 38-c variety.
Overall a good hunt that I will remember for quite awhile I am sure.
Added a sunlight shot of the Obverse, I am consulting now with an individual on how to treat "Tin Plague" which is what eats away the white metal/pewter relics we find, learn something new every day, never heard of the term before, but there is a treatment procedure to retard it, other than spraying with lacquer........
Don
This homestead is not a detectorist friendly type, it fools you, as you approach it the site looks very clean, hardly any underbrush
However, with this being my third hunt there, I did not really find any artifacts in the clear area, the depression which indicates a homestead location is on the edge of a big green briar and underbrush area in the far right of the photo.
So, this morning was one of those hunts where I had hand pruners in one hand and the detector in the other and had to cut green briar in order to swing and walk. My first target was a cuff sized tombac button and it appeared to be next to a very old overgrown path/road and next to it was a raised area that I now think was the homestead itself and that the depresion hole about 20 feet away was an outbuilding of some type. I got a decent reading on the edge of this raised area and soon retrieved a very large round disk that reminded me of a Wm H Harrison Presidential medal I found years ago, made of white metal/pewter.
Sure enough, as I held it in my hand I could see a bust that looked just like my other medal, but this one sure looked like George Washington!
Not knowing for sure, I put the coin in a envelop with some moist dirt in hopes of preserving the crumbling edges. I continued hunting, but now I was thinking, wonder if it is a GW Indian Peace medal? Well, dream on Don, it was not to be.
About 10 feet from where the GW came out of the ground, I got a no doubt about it coin reading, a little better than the GW reading which despite being white metal gave a quite high tone on the SE. But this one was a coin and sure enough, a small thick copper emerged.
I had no idea for sure what the coin was, heavily encrusted and looked worn but it was a small planchet and very thick, so I knew it would not be a KG copper of any sort, but it would have to wait for ID till I got home and cleaned it.
I continued hunting for about another 45 minutes, getting a couple of what is its and a pewter spoon handle section, and two seperate pieces of shoe buckle.
So, once home, I put the GW medal in water, and the other stuff in peroxide, I let a few friends know of what I might have found and one, Kirk, found an article with a photo of one that matched my GW.
It seems that my medal is a 1797 George Washington medal for sure!
But now I wanted to know what was written on the back since I could only make out fragmented parts of what was there. Iron Patch helped and found an example of what I found and now I feel pretty good finding another piece of valued history to add to my collection.
Here is the medal I found and I put it next to the photos of the one IP found online so you can read what it says.
Here is a short blurp what is said about this medal:
1797 Washington Presidency Resigned medal. Baker-66. White metal. Plain edge. 383.7 grains. 37.5 mm. A scarce 18th-century medal by Wyon commemorating Washington's yielding of presidential power to John Adams in 1797. Medium pewter gray . Struck on a thick planchet (3.3 mm at the rim) An important historical medal
Last but not least and this alone would have made my hunt a success, my 5th NJ copper for this year! Hard to believe for even me, but sure enough that thick little copper I found turned out to be a well worn, but identifiable 1787 NJ Maris 38-c variety.
Overall a good hunt that I will remember for quite awhile I am sure.
Added a sunlight shot of the Obverse, I am consulting now with an individual on how to treat "Tin Plague" which is what eats away the white metal/pewter relics we find, learn something new every day, never heard of the term before, but there is a treatment procedure to retard it, other than spraying with lacquer........
Don
Upvote
2
Definitely Banner in my book! Keep up the great work! HH
It will look great in your display of Colonial artifacts. Wow, what a year you and New Jersey are having in 2011. 
That's great Don 
Great Post ~ Great Find~! 
