Barber Coin Spill!

terpfan

Bronze Member
Oct 31, 2007
1,655
694
Maryland/ NC
Detector(s) used
White's Matrix M6
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Have loved following this site for years, but have never posted. This is for two reasons: 1) I've rarely found anything that exceptional and 2) I've been intimidated by the learning curve of getting a photo posted. Nonetheless, I LOVE THIS HOBBY!! My thirteen year old son and I have been detecting for two years now, and we're addicted. This site has been a fabulous inspiration. Your stories give us the feeling that the next great find will be our own. We have learned so much from all of the contributors here, and are so grateful to you. Thanks!

On to the story. Friday was my best day ever. I had an hour free to detect during the day, and went to a 1906 suburban house just outside of Washington DC. I had gotten permission to hunt this home before, and had found few wheaties and a few silver dimes there in the past. This visit I decided to focus on a 20x20 area of lawn between the front door and the street. I had hunted this area before, but was hoping to find something that had been previously missed. I learned this from others on TNET, when they say "a site is never hunted out". Boy was that good advice.

Anyway, I soon unearthed 5 or 6 memorials that had previously been missed. I then got a weak 80 VDI signal at 4" that was very promising. I felt this might be another Rosie like I'd found here before. I dug a nice plug and scanned it with the coil. It now read a strong 85 VDI. Maybe a quarter? I split the plug in half and found THREE SILVER COINS stuck together in the split!!!. Carefully I removed the coins and carried them to a nearby lily pond to rinse them. My heart was racing when I discovered three BARBERS--two quarters (1906 and 1911 S) and one dime (1905 S)!! The 1911 S quarter was in exceptional condition, I believe it to be the prettiest coin (of any age) I have ever held in my hands. The other two coins are much more worn.

Knowing I had only a few minutes left to hunt, I wrapped the coins in paper napkins and placed them back in my truck. I hoped to find something else, and was soon rewarded with a 60VDI target at 4". I expected another zincoln but was thrilled with my first indian head, a 1899! It has a beautiful green patina, and is in better condition than any of the wheats I had found at this site. What a day!!!

The 1911 S quarter is clearly the best find of the day. I was hoping that someone here could advise me on how to further clean the coin, or if I should even try. All I have used was soap and warm water. As you can see, this did not get all of the dirt off, and I'm afraid to do more. In addition, I was wondering if it would be worth it to get the coin professionally cleaned and slabbed, as others on this site do. I hope the photos do this coin justice. It really is sharp. It has 90% of the sheen of a brand new uncirculated coin. Is this unusual for a coin that has been in the ground for nearly 100 years?

Thanks for reading.

Steve
 

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Upvote 0

RONC(OR)

Hero Member
Aug 28, 2006
860
8
Eugene ,OR
Detector(s) used
Etrac/ X-8-X-1/ /Excalibur 2/AuqaHog ~yayer
Wow thats a nice bunch of silver! I would not clean it. congrats :thumbsup:
 

Lowbatts

Gold Member
Jul 1, 2003
6,573
67
Elgin
Detector(s) used
Fishers 1235X-8" CZ-20/21-8" F-70-11"DD GC1023
Geez when you "finally" found something worth posting, you meant it!
Those are sweet digs!
 

mikewaz

Bronze Member
May 9, 2008
1,606
4
Chicago
Detector(s) used
Fisher 1266 X Fisher F75
Great Finds! :thumbsup:
Well you've certainly got something to brag about now. Those coins are beauts, and that quarter is awesome.
Welcome to the forum! Hopefully, now that you got your feet wet, we'll see some more posts from you!
Mike
 

daytondigger

Bronze Member
Oct 6, 2004
1,377
10
Dayton, Ohio
Detector(s) used
Fisher CZ5
Nice coin spill, congrats. I wouldn't clean the coin any more. I don't feel it's rare enough to send out to be cleaned or slabbed. But a real nice addition to anyone's coin collection. :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
 

burglarifyoulike

Sr. Member
Aug 24, 2008
476
57
Detector(s) used
White's DFX
wow, congratulations!!! i just found my first silver, a barber dime, and was thrilled!! but 3 at once!!! and you are right, that 1911 is beautiful!! wish you lots more fun hunting!
 

creeper71

Silver Member
Dec 5, 2007
2,936
61
South Central PA
holy crap! you got a Barber with the liberty still well struck...that is a very rare find... must of been dropped soon after it was minted... really nice finds!
 

Goldiver

Bronze Member
Sep 15, 2006
2,345
1,150
Fremont, Ohio
Detector(s) used
Equinox 800, Fisher F-75 LTD2, CZ-70, CZ-21, 1280x, Vibraprobe 560, Minelab Pro-Find 35
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Welcome to TNet! :thumbsup: Very sweet recovery! :thumbsup: That is very rare to find a spill like that, those are some of my favorite coins to dig. Keep on sharing your finds, however big or small they are.

Good Luck, :coffee2:
Steve
 

Narthoniel

Bronze Member
Jul 1, 2008
1,755
6
Virginia Beach
Detector(s) used
Excal 2 and E Trac
Welcome to Tnet! You sure know how to make an introduction for yourself! You say pictures are intimidating to post, but you did exceptionally well posting and photographing those! Wonderful finds!
Anthony
 

G.I.B.

Gold Member
Feb 23, 2007
7,187
8,537
North Central Florida
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
CTX 3030 / GTI 2500 / Infinium LS / Tesoro Sand Shark / 1 Garrett Pro-pointer / 1 Carrot / Vibra Probe 580 (out on loan) / Lesche M85 / Mark1 MOD1 EyeBall
Primary Interest:
Other
Man is that sweet... you have found what I'm dreaming about!

Double congrats!!!
 

Captn SE

Silver Member
Apr 1, 2007
2,774
13
Southern CA
Detector(s) used
Minelab Explorer SE; X-1 Target Probe; Pro Coil, 6x8 SEF, Coiltek Platypus Elliptical, Sunray X8, Expl. 1050 coils
Beautiful coin spill!!

I would just leave the coins as is!! That's a plug you will never forget!! :thumbsup:

Congrats,
CAPTN SE
Dan
 

DD-777

Silver Member
Feb 21, 2007
2,522
26
Over the River and thru the Woods...
Detector(s) used
Team Tesoro
Welcome to T'net Steve! That's a heck of a first post - those coins are fantastic! Ultimately, the decision to clean or not to clean, is yours. Personally, that 1911 (with the exception of that little bit of tarnish on the reverse) is spectacular. I would think it could grade at AU-50 at the very least. That would put it in the price range of around 250 to 300 bucks. While it is not a very rare coin - it's not everyday that one sees one in such great shape. If it were me, I would contact PCGS or NGC via e-mail and a couple of pics, and see what they say about it. In the meanwhile, don't clean it or give it to anyone to clean. That is most certainly a beautiful coin. Congrats and once again, welcome aboard... :thumbsup:
 

bilt46

Sr. Member
Oct 11, 2008
382
58
around town
Detector(s) used
CZ5
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Nice coins, Its a great feeling finding more than 1 in a hole.. Was the INDIAN in the same hole? Listen for whispers around that hole.
BillT.
 

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