Beauty and the Beast!!

j.d. in the usa · Jun 29, 2006

I was detecting some of the old cellar holes today it was very hot and only planned on spending an hour or so, an old lady makes gardens around the cellars holes shes pretty cool and lets me detect, I found and 1853 Arrows Half dime in awsome condition along one of the cellar holes, I was stoked because of recent rain there were spider webs all over the place as I was looking along the rock wall I saw a web and right in the middle of it was this black widow spider its the first one I ever saw my heart skipped pretty fast... I used flying bug spray to kill it and it worked its huge its bigger than the half dime a little smaller than a reg. dime... hh all and be safe!!! jd

The Seeker · Jun 29, 2006

The funny thing about metal detecting and Insects....They go hand and hand !!!! unless your hunting in the winter !!!! Like here up north !!!
No Bugs on this day !!!!

groundfisher · Jun 29, 2006

Beatiful Half dime JD! Excellent condition. Ever see the movie Arachniphobia? Thats the first thought that came to my mind when I saw that hideous lookin thing.
I hope you find more coins and less spiders next time out. HH!

bazinga · Jun 29, 2006

RatRacer said:
Beautiful half dime, there! Wait, wouldn't half a dime be a nickel? Were these before nickels? Nice spider, too. Put a pin thru her and mount her on cardboard before she dries and curls up. Keep searching!

"The coin known popularly as the “Nickel,” first appeared in 1866. The term “Nickel” refers to the main component of the alloy used to strike the coin and was meant to differentiate the new coin from another of the same denomination that circulated at the same time -- the Half Dime made of silver. Despite the fact that other coins were (and are still being) made primarily of Nickel, the term stuck in reference to the Five Cents piece." - www.coinfacts.com

Hope that helps!

agbonanza · Jun 29, 2006

WOW!!! waht a great find...looks like someone dropped it just yesterday...and glad you saw the "widow" before she bit you....HH and be safe!!

Jeffro · Jun 29, 2006

Nice find again, JD.... and don't sweat the widows TOO much... if they nail you, it'll just make ya nauseous for a bit. One got me down in Nevada. Swelled up and irritated the heck out of my finger, and I was a little sick and sweaty for a bit, but it may have been more nerves than anything. "bout like a beesting.

Pimp Lenin · Jun 29, 2006

That half dime look sweet.

The black widow reminds me of the redbacks in Australia for some reason. Anyhoo, tis the season to watch out for snakes, too! I found out after i MD'd a section of woods this past weekend that my neighbor had seen a four foot cottonmouth in that area! Sheesh!

Rusted_Iron · Jun 30, 2006

Nice find JD! that's quite a spider you got there too!

romeo-1 · Jun 30, 2006

Scary stuff, this post could have been lost in the ether if you hadn't seen that spider first. A good reminder for us all to be wary...

Gypsy Heart · Jun 30, 2006

Wow JD....That is one really cool find ...and the dime isnt half bad either

My spider pic would have been smashed flat tho...with rocks on it....

Leon · Jun 30, 2006

Totally awesome JD, Congratulations on such a sweet find...
Looks like it was dropped the day it was minted, very nice...
Cool info on the spider Sherm, ya learn something new every day...
Good luck, & Happy hunting~

Blackjack77 · Jun 30, 2006

Nice coin- Winter does have its advantages!!
congrats & HH

Devilflish · Jun 30, 2006

Nice find

j.d. in the usa · Jun 30, 2006

thanks again everyone!!

IrishCharlieM · Jul 1, 2006

Beaut of a coin, great condition.

As for the Widow I grew up in San Diego Ca. Black Widows are like house pets....LOL. They are everywhere. I work on Air Conditioning and in San Diego that is the first thing you look for everytime you open an outdoor unit you will find one. You kill it and go on about your business. I have been bitten three times. First time I didn't see her and was reaching around the back of a compressor and stuck my hand right into her web. She bit me in defence. I went into convulsions on a rooftop and started throwing up. Within minutes I was out cold. Two roofing guys found me laying near the unit, later I was told I was pale white. They called an ambulance which in turn called a lifeflight helicopter, (At the cost of $8,000 to my insurence). I awoke three days later in the hospital, The thing with the anti-toxin of the Black Widow is it only works once. The doctor told me 1 out of 50,000 people develop an immunity to the bite the rest die if ever bitten again. Guess I was one of the lucky ones. The other two times I was bite was crawling over an AC unit in an attic and pulling ivy at my grandmothers house. I just got very sick and was hospitalized for a few days each time.

It is amazing how something so small can create such trauma on a man my size....

Great coin thou.

rabajohn · Jul 1, 2006

Spiders and Cellars and Webs, Oh my!

I hates spiders. But if that spider was a sittin on top of that dime when I spotted it. All fear aside, he's one well dead 8-legger.

That one is so big, I think I would offer him up on eBay and see what happens.

Someone must have lost that dime right away. The detail is amazing. WTG

Rabby