First one after 6 years of detecting

40 Rounds · May 21, 2026

I know crotal bells are fairly common back east and into parts of the Midwest but this is a first for me. I was not expecting to find this based on where I was digging. A new park that used to have an elementary school there. The school was built in the early 50s so must have been something there before that. Anyway glad to finally get one and it still rings!

E-Trac-Ohio · May 22, 2026

Congrats on finding your first Crotal Bell !

sibbley · May 22, 2026

Nice rivet bell. They were introduced in the early 1860's.

Silvermonkey · May 22, 2026

40 Rounds said:
I know crotal bells are fairly common back east and into parts of the Midwest but this is a first for me. I was not expecting to find this based on where I was digging. A new park that used to have an elementary school there. The school was built in the early 50s so must have been something there before that. Anyway glad to finally get one and it still rings!

That's a great looking Crotal bell. They may be more common back East, but still a rare find in my book. I've been detecting seriously for the past 10 + years here in Massachusetts, and have only found two. Congratulations on finding your first.

oldmxrat · May 22, 2026

Very cool, congrats!

40 Rounds · May 23, 2026

Thank you everyone! I found an old map of the area and sure enough it looks like there was an old farm or residence right there!

pepperj · May 23, 2026

Silvermonkey said:
That's a great looking Crotal bell. They may be more common back East, but still a rare find in my book. I've been detecting seriously for the past 10 + years here in Massachusetts, and have only found two. Congratulations on finding your first.

In the last 20 yrs I've gotten 100+ Crotal bells. Some places zero bells and other sites I get a half dozen.

pepperj · May 23, 2026

40 Rounds said:
I know crotal bells are fairly common back east and into parts of the Midwest but this is a first for me. I was not expecting to find this based on where I was digging. A new park that used to have an elementary school there. The school was built in the early 50s so must have been something there before that. Anyway glad to finally get one and it still rings!

Congratulations on your first bell. Digging something that's over a 100+yrs old, cleaning the dirt out, and it jingles when you shake it, never gets old.
It brings it back to life.
It's actually a sleigh bell and not a Crotal bell.
This old forum discussion has some good information on the different types.

🔎 UNIDENTIFIED - What is the difference between a crotal bell and a sleigh bell?? | TreasureNet.com https://share.google/xZPkTMbRMe2jKbPvA

40 Rounds · May 24, 2026

pepperj said:
Congratulations on your first bell. Digging something that's over a 100+yrs old, cleaning the dirt out, and it jingles when you shake it, never gets old.
It brings it back to life.
It's actually a sleigh bell and not a Crotal bell.
This old forum discussion has some good information on the different types.

🔎 UNIDENTIFIED - What is the difference between a crotal bell and a sleigh bell?? | TreasureNet.com https://share.google/xZPkTMbRMe2jKbPvA

Wow…a lot of information in that thread. Still looking it over. Thank you!