🥇 BANNER Amazing Coin Spill, Find of a lifetime for me!

[49r Relics]

So after 35 years of detecting I had the find of a lifetime. I was doing some research in the state library and came across an old hand drawn map of an area I have never researched before but the cartographer indicated where houses and cabins were and the map was dated 1851 (that's early for California) there were lines which after research I figured out were early Township lines, I was able to match them up to Google Earth and found 22 new sites. After 4 months of trying we finally got permission to hunt 2 of the sites and another 2 are on public land.

So the California Relic Adventures crew headed out to the first site of the four, me Ron Swenson (Ron CA) and Andrew Savich (Mr.Merc) were working around the iron and Andrew called us over with a nice find! We didn't get that dig on video but everything that happened after that we did film. An epic hunt. After Andrew cleaned out his area, we all spread out and walked different directions. I walked about 50' away and hit a high conductor target, what came after that was all caught live on video.

7 days later at the second site (from that map) I made another discovery of a lifetime. I will make a separate post for that find but that map has so far turned out to be a real treasure map! We are all still absolutely floored by these 2 hunts.

Here is the video

 

[EasternShoreMetal]

I have been really busy lately doing research for around here and hitting local sites whenever the temp goes above 40.. so I missed this when posted. OMGosh! I'm just like everyone else here, I'm sure. I kept pausing it and jumping up from the video going "Oh my Gosh!" "That's Crazy" and things like that. I kept running in and telling my wife, she'd smile, like you do for a person who you just want to humor, "That's nice, Dear."
and I'm like "Yes, but don't you understand? Not one half, not two, three!! and then Gold!" and I kept raising the reports.
Her last reply to me was, "Are you ready for dinner yet?"
AAAaaaaaarrrgrhh!
"No, I'm getting on a plane and flying to California!"

I'm not telling you all what a great find it was, you know that, I do wish that everyone could have found something..
That was a classic, wonderful set of finds, and thanks for filming it for the rest of us.. Very encouraging.
Keep on, sounds like you have a great area, you're not done yet!

 

[AU Seeker]

Mark congratulations on an epic find of a lifetime, getting those Eagles out of hibernation and the Banner as icing on the top!!!!!!

Congratulations also to Andrew!!!

Kudos to Ron for his great videography!!

A question, how were these coins cleaned

 

[aliensr]

All the coins are minted in SF. Thank you for all the positive comments everyone, I know I don't post much, but it really is great to see the feedback. Its a once in a lifetime find and promise we will get pics up soon.

too bad your site wasn't closer to Carson City.....awesome regardless....

 

[jewelerguy]

that video about made me pee my pants. wow how exciting. can't congratulate you guys enough

 

[perdidogringo]

Absolutely fantastic cache, Mark! Congratulations! If you are interested in checking out a 49er site on the Isthmus of Panama someday, send me a message.

 

[Army of 1]

Wow ! factor 10+ , congrats guys on your AWESOME recoveries ..cheers Mick

 

[Plumbata]

A week after this hunt at a whole seperate location I had another find of a lifetime. Stay tuned and I will post it in a few days.

Considering the wonderfully high-bar set for your definition of a "find of a lifetime", I seriously can't imagine what other treasures you've found. I'm sure that I'm not alone in saying that the suspense is darn near torture!

Looking forward to seeing it when you feel it's time to share. Congrats again!

 

[Hondo]

Just wow, the stuff dreams are made of!!!

 

[imagearhead]

I agree with the rest of these replies.... Absolutely speechless is pretty much the only fitting response. I'm so very happy for them and I completely agree with the statement made in the video regarding RESEARCH. It is my opinion that well over 90% of all great finds IS due to very good research. Either way, I'm totally jealous and hope that we will continue to see more epic finds from these gentlemen in the future.

 

[JeffInMass]

My friggin heart was pounding watching that video- I can only imagine what it would've been like being there! Congrats to all of you!! Simply amazing!!

-- Jeff --

 

[Bubba65]

AS said by many before CONGRATS ON TWO AWESOME FINDS and for making the BANNER . Also the video was AWESOME !!! Thanks for sharing

 

[tracey17]

WOW!!!!! What a GREAT FIND!!!! Good for you guys!!!! I'm gonna find something great too one day!!!!

 

[bravowhiskey]

damnedest coin cache video I ever had the heart pounding privelige to see. Thankyou and MUCHO congrats.

 

[oakhunter27]

All I can say is awesome

 

[lookindown]

I have no words at all. Unbelievable. Best of Treasurenet all the way. Definitely scattered cache. Find someone to plow that ground up for you and you WILL find more coins in that spot!! Pay the owner to plow it up, trust me you'll find more!

-Buck

Yeah, this could be the tip of the iceberg...there could be a whole cache in one deeper hole...these coins could have been pulled up and scattered somehow...you never know.

 

[ReidMan]

Wow, great video something to keep the rest of us digging.

 

[The Rebel]

A HUGE congrats to you as well as your buddies on a hunt of a lifetime! It's hunts like that, that keep us going! Bet it was hard to fall asleep that night.

 

[EccentricInTexas]

AMAZING FINDS!!!

 

[49r Relics]

Mark congratulations on an epic find of a lifetime, getting those Eagles out of hibernation and the Banner as icing on the top!!!!!!

Congratulations also to Andrew!!!

Kudos to Ron for his great videography!!

A question, how were these coins cleaned

Hello and Thank You from all of us!

We actually did tons of research about conservation of dug, gold coins before we even ever attempted it. We even filmed the entire process and might make a video out of it sometime soon to post in the cleaning and preservation section. But the key obviously with gold coins is not to let anything rub against the metal whatsoever because the surface hardness of gold coins is so susceptible to micro abrasions from even the softest cloth. The first order of business was soaking them for a couple days, then using a waterpik to remove all surface dirt. The short answer to your question "How were they cleaned" is . . . very carefully. But we did take the time to do it right. My biggest recommendation to anyone digging up a gold coin from soil, is to resist the temptation to see a date, even though we used our tongues and spit to reveal the dates, that could have easily scratched the surface. Hope to make that video showing our whole process someday soon.

Thanks again!

Mark

 

[49r Relics]

Considering the wonderfully high-bar set for your definition of a "find of a lifetime", I seriously can't imagine what other treasures you've found. I'm sure that I'm not alone in saying that the suspense is darn near torture!

Looking forward to seeing it when you feel it's time to share. Congrats again!

Yes, there are rules here at T-Net about banner posts, no one person can be on the banner twice at any time, which I think is a great and fair rule. The find I made at a separate site a week later will be somewhat cheapened by this find but on it's own would have definitely been the find of a lifetime for 99% of us detectorists and I will post it but it can't be a candidate for another banner. The craziest thing about it is, this second find of a lifetime happened at the second site we checked on our map!! We still have not got to the other 2 sites we have to check and now we have recent permission for a site adjacent to where these coins were all found. So here's hoping that it was a broken saddlebag on a trail dropping coins along the way!!! Sorry for the suspense, will get a new post up next weekend.

HH, Mark