East River Finds - Ancient .38 Revolver, Nautical Jesus, Clad, etc.

[UnderMiner]

Hit the filthy river today at ultra-low tide around 4pm. I don't suggest hunting this river unless you're prepared to find a bunch of gross stuff - severed rotting sheep's heads, used hypodermic syringes, bloated floating rat carcasses... you get the picture. Sometimes though there are some nice things.

My favorite find was the nautical Jesus - a Crucifix/Anchor complete with a ship's steering wheel, how cool is that?! Update: Just confirmed this piece to be 4.3 grams of Sterling Silver!


The Crucifix/Anchor cleaned up nice to reveal a nice shiny Sterling Silver underneath! Thanks to MsBeepBeep and Loco-Digger for convincing me to take a second look at it and discover it to be silver and not copper! Thanks guys!


Total clad came out to $2.65 - enough for 1.5 gallons of gas!


This gun is actually in 3 pieces, I put them all together again later after finding them one at a time in an area of about 2 square feet.
I think it's a .38, not sure if it's a 5 or 6 shot. The cylinder is stuck forever in a semi-open position.
Maybe been in the water a good 25+ years at least.

 

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[parsonwalker]

Pretty cool! All I can say for sure is that is def a 5 shot. Looks a lot like a Smith & Wesson J Frame "Detective Special". Guarantee that was thrown in the river for a creepy reason!

 

[garrett at pro lvr]

I would turn that back into a neck less and wear it. I work on the water and that thing is awesome.

 

[Msbeepbeep]

You are a brave soul!
Those are great finds! Congrats!

Makes you wonder what the story is behind the gun.

Is the pendant silver?

 

[A2coins]

Erie find makes me wonder about river detecting..

 

[UnderMiner]

You are a brave soul!
Those are great finds! Congrats!

Makes you wonder what the story is behind the gun.

Is the pendant silver?

The gun appears to be of poor quality, so it's likely an old "Saturday Night Special" used in all sorts of crimes. There was a big crime epidemic that peaked in the 1980's (as a result of the crack epidemic) so it's likely from that era. The massive amount of corrosion certainly provides evidence to its long period of submersion. Lots of robberies and muggings back then - so most likely was dumped by a drugged-up criminal on the run. One thing I can say for certain is that very shortly before he tossed it he opened the cylinder and ejected the shell casings. In a hurry, he neglected to close the cylinder, and tossed the gun into the river where it remained in the opened position, eventually concreting into a solid mass.

As for the "Crucifix/Anchor" I think it's made of copper, still cool though! I like nautical-themeded jewlery

 

[against the wind]

Very nice recoveries,
The East River isn't really a river.
It is a 12 mile salt water tidal strait that
connects Upper New York Bay to the Long Island Sound.
That means that a lot of the floating debris and carcasses
get flushed twice a day with the movement of the tide.
The water has cleaned up considerably over the years,
but I would suggest that you keep your Tetanus Shots up to date.
Congrats

 

[trapperart]

Congrats on some nice finds

 

[HenryWaltonJonesJr]

Very brave and you made some interesting finds! I'd make sure your tetanus shot is up to date though!

 

[Loco-Digger]

Sounds like a place I'd not hunt alone.

I found a pic like your crusafix, it's probably made of silver. Nice save.

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/a7/6a/5f/a76a5f0f16c3dd3e0b04e0ac220b5239.jpg

 

[Msbeepbeep]

Sounds like a place I'd not hunt alone.

I found a pic like your crusafix, it's probably made of silver. Nice save.

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/a7/6a/5f/a76a5f0f16c3dd3e0b04e0ac220b5239.jpg

That's what I thought cause it's dark from the salt.

 

[tony curnick]

Congrats on the stunning crucifix, the revolver looks like it could use some oil..

 

[UnderMiner]

Sounds like a place I'd not hunt alone.

I found a pic like your crusafix, it's probably made of silver. Nice save.

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/a7/6a/5f/a76a5f0f16c3dd3e0b04e0ac220b5239.jpg

That's what I thought cause it's dark from the salt.

Yep! You're both right! See this is why I love this forum! I did some really hardcore cleaning and it revealed a nice shiny silver underneath all that corrosion! Also on the back there is a little "925" sterling stamp on the right arm of the cross! So cool, now it is a little bit more special to me. Like I said earlier I really like nautical-themed jewelry, and this one really takes the cake in my book! I think I'll wear it for good luck