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🥇 BANNER Low hopes and an entry level detector but I still ended up finding an awesome relic!

coinman123

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Location
New England, Somewhere Metal Detecting in the Wood
🥇 Banner finds
2
Detector(s) used
Teknetics T2 SE (DST)
Spare Teknetics T2 SE (backup)
15" T2 coil
Pro-Pointer
Bounty Hunter Pioneer 202
Fisher F2
Fisher F-Point
Primary Interest:
Other
Anyways, Today I headed out to a place that did not look that good. I have tried with my T2 before but never found much but shotgun shells and pulltabs but gave it a try today. I decided to bring someone along and let them use my T2 while I used my old Fisher F2 from two years ago (did I mention that it goes crazy and will frantically beep due to the coil cable being lose). Anyways, I was not expecting much when I got a signal right in the middle of the biggest patch of poison ivy in the whole place. I figured it was worth it and dug. I battled through roots and leaves (which unfortunately were poison ivy leaves) after some digging the find was out. I let my hunting partner use the pinpointer which is already not much use considering it was a freebie that came with the metal detector (I'm getting my Pro-Pointer in the mail this Thursday :)). Anyways, I dig out a weird piece of metal, I quickly can tell it's a sundial. I figure it's not much and probably 1930's garden. I finish the hunt with a handful of pulltabs, some shotgun shells, beer cans, a cool 1980's coke bottle which I kept :), and a nice pair of hedgeclippers that were on the surface laying against a log that are sure to go to good use. Anyways, after I got home I saw that sundial looks to be colonial and made of pewter and made best relic of the year on some website. I was thrilled after reading that what looked like a poor find is really something great. I guess that what I have always told people I metal detect is true, it does not matter how bad a place is or how poor you may think your metal detector is, good finds can still pop up out of no where.

It's in very bad condition, to the point of where parts of the edge are crumbling in my hand but it is still all there.
IMG_20150607_194433.webp

Update: Here is a better photo
sundial.webp
I just put the glue and water solution on it, it looks pretty good. I will post photos of it's

Here it is during elmer's glue cleaning...
display case soon.20150608_173022.webp
 
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Very Cool Relic coinman !
I must say it's the First I've ever seen Dug & posted here

it's rare I vote Banner.
But this is Unique enough I threw Mine in the list :thumbsup:
 
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WOW,What a great find:headbang: congrats:notworthy:
 
That is an amazing and unique find! I would also suggest a banner on this one! Congrats!
 
Wow, nice one for sure! I'd hang on to the F2 just a bit longer.
 
Pardon me, Do you have the time? :laughing7:
 
Cool... now you will know what time it is :P
 
Yes after reading more on your find and its rarity I vote Banner.
 
very cool find.
 
It's like I've always said too. The best detector is the one in my hand at the moment. Sure, there are "better" ones, more powerful, etc.
But, it's not the detector that makes the decision to dig.

WTG!
 
Thanks for the dimensions. Depending on the rarity it could very well be a banner find.

Now...I just gotta ask. Why would it depend on the rarity?
 
Extremely nice piece! It weathered all those years well!
Banner in my opinion.
 
Haven't seen any of these posted before sweet finding ! :occasion14: Hope the Ivy rash is not too bad :BangHead: Got my banner vote too !
 
Guys are unearthing Colonial-era items here all the time--it's the rarer items that make it to the banner. I was the first person to mention banner and I wanted to learn more about it before placing my actual vote.

I just put a Banner vote in for the Coinman and his Colonial-era sundial :thumbsup:

Now...I just gotta ask. Why would it depend on the rarity?
 
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Congrats on a cool find coinman
 
Made it on top right away! Rightfully so! Congrats on a rare find and will display very nicely!!! preserve it as soon as you can!
 
Well, this doesn't make my decision to not hunt in poison ivy feel any better. I've never even been allergic!

Great find! I don't reckon I'll see another one dug. Congrats!
 
Sorry, but I just saw this thread and your find already made banner - congrats! This is an absolutely amazing artifact, and the first one I've seen in pewter. As advised by others, please take immediate action to conserve this item to protect against any additional damage or deterioration. It's incredible a pewter relic like this has survived all these years relatively intact. Again, great job, and I know this is an artifact that you'll treasure forever.

BTW - I dug a small portion of the base from a brass sundial about 3 years ago, but it's not as old as yours (see 1st pic below). Then my partner Dan's father dug the shadow caster piece (called the "gnomon") last year at another site, and its either brass or copper (see 2nd pic). But nobody I know (other than you) has come close to unearthing a complete example.

sundial1.webp

sundial2.webp
 

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