🥇 BANNER Does Coral beep? yes, when its full of coins!!!

[BVI Hunter]

Could'nt work out why this lump of coral (in 2 ft of water) at the beach kept "hitting"?

brought it home and it started to fall apart in my bag - WOW!!!

just need to identify them and work out how to save / clean them

any ideas

thanks!!

 

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[swamp yankee]

WOW! Great score!!! If it were me I'd get a CLEAN glass bowl to fit the whole group and put them in it ,fill with DISTILLED WATER enough to cover them and plastic wrap to seal it up.Let them soak for a couple three weeks. Be patient as you don't want to rush/damage them at all.I would contact a conservator at a local college for advice after they soak and see if they fall apart(seperate) by themselves...

 

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[Jason in Enid]

WOW! Great score!!! If it were me I'd get a CLEAN glass bowl to fit the whole group and put them in it ,fill with DISTILLED WATER enough to cover them and plastic wrap to seal it up.Let them soak for a couple three weeks.

No, if you don't change the water, it won't be able to pull out very much salt. Desalination like this is based on the principle of equalization of ions. The artifact is filled with water soluble salt minerals. When you place it in fresh water, nature wants to equalize things so salt moves out of the item and into the water. The more salt in the water, the slower the desalination of the item. That is why you want to frequently change the water.

Many hunters put artifacts in the toilet tank (the top, not the bottom) so that they have a constant clearing of the water without constant handling or wasting water. If you do this, by sure to put the coins in something so none could slip down into the water drain.

 

[Erik in NJ]

Many hunters put artifacts in the toilet tank (the top, not the bottom)...

Good post ... I really laughed when I saw that you actually thought it wise to elaborate on which part of the toilette you should put the finds in , but based on some posts I read here from time to time it was probably a wise thing to do!

 

[strateloss]

Incredible find!! Congrats on making banner too!! I'd be out there combing that coast searching for more!! If people ask have you found anything at that site yet, just tell them it's your first day...lol

GL finding a lot more!!

on a side note; I'll make sure to pick up every piece of coral that rings up from now on ...

 

[silversurfer1111]

wow !!!!!!!!!!!! I know what you can do with them ... give them to me lol j/k ..... what ever you do it will be awesome

 

[MPH200]

Awesome find you should be very proud, & very quiet about the location.

 

[steelheadwill]

Jonas, I'm not sure how much you know about shipwrecks and treasure and such. But here is one aspect to your find you may not have considered. These coins were not in some "pirates chest" or even a crew or captain's stash. This is a neatly stacked group of coins. That means they were counted as part of a manifest and loaded into a transport chest, most likely sailing east. If you found this "stack", you can be certain there are others, even if there was a single chest. Combined with the other iron artifacts you have found (I hope you have those in fresh water too) says shipwreck, very close to your spot. May be a little bit off the beach, but very close to your area.

I am absolutely green with envy. I wish I could be there to help you do some off-shore investigation.

Lastly, it looks like the visible date is 1729, which also fits with the partial "Philippus V" visible on another coin. Now, if I remember correctly, you said there are no known wrecks of the period in this area. That could very likely mean that this "unknown" was lost in a storm with all hands and nobody knew where it went down. But you have a date you know it can't be earlier than, and is most likely not more than a few years after. Pretty narrow window to begin searching. Of course, it could be a fluke coin stack from a much later shipwreck, ,but I highly doubt it.

Good advice, I replied with the short version

 

[BVI Hunter]

No, if you don't change the water, it won't be able to pull out very much salt. Desalination like this is based on the principle of equalization of ions. The artifact is filled with water soluble salt minerals. When you place it in fresh water, nature wants to equalize things so salt moves out of the item and into the water. The more salt in the water, the slower the desalination of the item. That is why you want to frequently change the water.

Many hunters put artifacts in the toilet tank (the top, not the bottom) so that they have a constant clearing of the water without constant handling or wasting water. If you do this, by sure to put the coins in something so none could slip down into the water drain.

Good idea!! and as my water is fed from a rain collection system (very common here) it means the water is as pure as it can be!

 

[BVI Hunter]

Jonas, I'm not sure how much you know about shipwrecks and treasure and such. But here is one aspect to your find you may not have considered. These coins were not in some "pirates chest" or even a crew or captain's stash. This is a neatly stacked group of coins. That means they were counted as part of a manifest and loaded into a transport chest, most likely sailing east. If you found this "stack", you can be certain there are others, even if there was a single chest. Combined with the other iron artifacts you have found (I hope you have those in fresh water too) says shipwreck, very close to your spot. May be a little bit off the beach, but very close to your area.

I am absolutely green with envy. I wish I could be there to help you do some off-shore investigation.

Lastly, it looks like the visible date is 1729, which also fits with the partial "Philippus V" visible on another coin. Now, if I remember correctly, you said there are no known wrecks of the period in this area. That could very likely mean that this "unknown" was lost in a storm with all hands and nobody knew where it went down. But you have a date you know it can't be earlier than, and is most likely not more than a few years after. Pretty narrow window to begin searching. Of course, it could be a fluke coin stack from a much later shipwreck, ,but I highly doubt it.

i agree that i think they were in a chest - pocket spill would not be stcked, nor a bag or pouch - as the bag rotted away the coins would have spread out?
I think they were in a chest - the water seeped in and started to "bind" the coins together(?) then by the time the chest was gone completely, the coins were in a secure clump.
Another posted pointed out correctly - this is not true "coral" as I find om my cononballs bit more of a crustacean?

Will be heading back for more for sure!

 

[goldnsilver]

Thanks for letting us in on this super find! This is surely the most interesting thread I have had the pleasure of following, since lurking here. My first thoughts were either a buried chest or the location pirates chose for careening their ship. There are many areas here in the Chesapeake Bay where 2 feet of water was dry land just 50 years ago, and 8 feet of water could have been dry land in 1750. Since you are finding other early items in this location, ship careening could be a possibility too, and some pirates did stash their silver during the weeks of repairing the ship. Sunken treasure is still a possibility, and I am in agreement with those that think more is "very close" by.

 

[BVI Hunter]

Thanks for letting us in on this super find! This is surely the most interesting thread I have had the pleasure of following, since lurking here. My first thoughts were either a burried chest or the location pirates chose for careening their ship. There are many areas here in the Chesapeake Bay where 2 feet of water was dry land just 50 years ago, and 8 feet of water could have been dry land in 1750. Since you are finding other early items in this location, ship careening could be a possibility too, and some pirates did stash their silver during the weeks of repairing the ship. Sunken treasure is still a possibility, and I am in agreement with those that think more is "very close" by.

Good point - i have asked some old local fishermen (without giving too much away!) and many areas here (mine in particular) they seem to remember the costline being further out, ie lots of erosion etc from storms etc.
SO - it may be possible that its not a wreck after all, but BURIED bounty, that has since sunk into the sea??

 

[ScubaFinder]

I'm still on the shipwreck theory for many obvious reasons but an amazing find either way, congrats. I conserve a lot of shipwreck artifacts and I agree with the conservation advice you have been given. If it were my clump, I might consider going one step further and cleaning just the face of the top coin. You can do this by VERY CAREFULLY painting small quantities of CLR (Calcium Lime and Rust remover) onto the face of the top coin until you remove the coral from the entire face without destroying the clump. Be careful because the CLR will soak into the coral and seep into areas you may not want to dissolve. It's a long process, start with a tiny drop right in the center of the coin face, wait for it to stop bubbling, rinse scrub and repeat until the face of the front coin is mostly visible. When you have it how you want it, mix baking soda and water into a thin pasty liquid and rub / soak the clump in it for several hours. This will neutralize the acids in the CLR and stop the process completely. Then rinse and soak in distilled water a few more times just to be sure.

Just a thought, I do this sometimes because it gives me the best of both worlds, I still have a clump but I know for sure what the coins are. This is mainly important when trying to identify a shipwreck, but it does sort-of give you the best of both worlds. Diluted muriatic (swimming pool) acid can also work, but it is a bit more corrosive and harder to control. Regardless, great find....and keep searching that area, you most certainly did not get them all. :-)

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

Great advice Scubafinder

 

[fatkook626]

wow,that is freaking awesome!

 

[StevoCBR]

I say if you can find somebody to give more in the raw state then what is there in silver/collector value wise, sell it and go buy more bullion. but that is just my PM perspective. Nice find regardless

 

[BVI Hunter]

I'm still on the shipwreck theory for many obvious reasons but an amazing find either way, congrats. I conserve a lot of shipwreck artifacts and I agree with the conservation advice you have been given. If it were my clump, I might consider going one step further and cleaning just the face of the top coin. You can do this by VERY CAREFULLY painting small quantities of CLR (Calcium Lime and Rust remover) onto the face of the top coin until you remove the coral from the entire face without destroying the clump. Be careful because the CLR will soak into the coral and seep into areas you may not want to dissolve. It's a long process, start with a tiny drop right in the center of the coin face, wait for it to stop bubbling, rinse scrub and repeat until the face of the front coin is mostly visible. When you have it how you want it, mix baking soda and water into a thin pasty liquid and rub / soak the clump in it for several hours. This will neutralize the acids in the CLR and stop the process completely. Then rinse and soak in distilled water a few more times just to be sure.

Just a thought, I do this sometimes because it gives me the best of both worlds, I still have a clump but I know for sure what the coins are. This is mainly important when trying to identify a shipwreck, but it does sort-of give you the best of both worlds. Diluted muriatic (swimming pool) acid can also work, but it is a bit more corrosive and harder to control. Regardless, great find....and keep searching that area, you most certainly did not get them all. :-)

good idea!! I'll see if this will work!!

 

[Pebble Puppy]

Inspirational and exciting!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Great find. Hope you find lots more.

 

[park pirate]

Would love to see them when cleaned up...Outstandind find.....

 

[The Rebel]

AARRGH! Shiver Me Timbers Matey! Find of a lifetime for sure! WTG! Get back out there & post more pictures!

MAKE SURE YOU ARE NOT BEING WATCHED WHEN YOUR OUT THERE. Happy Dances in the water are a BIG giveaway!

 

[MUD(S.W.A.T)]

Have you had a chance to get back out there yet ??
Keep @ it and HH !!