Most shocking find ever

[Smilodon]

I am just recovering from covid and I am cleared out of isolation. I am out walking the river banks, just happy to get out of the house and hopefully find a bottle or something. I live in Charleston SC and just about anywhere you go, history can be found. This specific area I have found Civil and Rev war items, many bottles and some occasional odds and ends. Heck the one day I found a 50.00 bill and could not wait to have it displayed in my man cave. Long story short, my wife spent it. Anyway back to what this is all about, I walked a couple miles and started to turn around and something caught me eye. I wasn't sure what it was but it looked like pig teeth, I didn't have much on me except a knife and began digging around it. I certainly was not prepared to be dig up something. I moved aside some seaweed and noticed another row of a few teeth ( this is when I snapped a photo). Well with the tide coming in an I was not wearing glasses I did not realize what I was digging. To me I still thought I was digging a palate of a peccary or pig, it also made it difficult due to the tide kept coming in and filling up everything I just cleared.

Once I was confident I had enough removed from the sides I put my hand in the murky salt water and to my shock I pulled a human skull from the hole. Well i dropped it, said some choice words and jumped away from it. I never thought in a million years I would ever find something like this, but I also figured the best thing to do was contact the police. Well with no cell tower I carried it back to my car and contacted the police. I figured I would go for a short walk and ended up spending many hours with the police. My hope is that it could give some family closure or help the solve a case. We waited for the coroner but they were unable to make it so they took the skull as they where also unsure of the jurisdiction. I was told they would be in touch as well as I may get some questions from the coroner.

They did ask why I did not leave it where I found it, but after they realized it was tide dependent they agreed that I did the right thing. I dont think I will ever forget this find and it is by far my most memorable find to date. I have been asked so many times what is the strangest thing I ever found, well I have the perfect answer now. Has anyone else ever found anything like this?

Also if you have any input on the age or something please let me know.

 

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[pepperj]

Teeth are in pretty good condition, as mentioned no dental work. Could be native American and old, maybe up to 300 t0 500 years. Lower jaw would have been a more telling piece as there is a trait that is more common in native Americans to identify.
No cavities suggests a more protein than starch diet, when corn became the staple diet cavities resulted, Huron diet pre- contact had a 60 to 70% starch diet. That`s eating alot of corn. This is all speculation by me..........interesting!

You can easily tell if it's a native American by the incisors. They are shovel shaped. Gary

Good eye on the recovery and the reporting (gee there hasn't been one of those on the banner yet)

Along river banks was a traditional burial sites for indigenous peoples in many parts.
We found one burial along a river bank over 55yrs ago now. It was determined that blunt force trauma was probably the cause of death as there was a fracture mark in the back of the rear lobe of the skull.
It was also a woman as the teeth were worn nearly flat so age was also a factor. The women gnawed on the hides, sinew, for softening, and other things if I can remember the reasons given at the time, where as the men didn't't and their teeth weren't worn down.

This skull could of had all the teeth and as Smokey pointed out the sockets had not healed.
So from the skull being exposed to the elements the teeth could of come dislocated from the sockets.
Then again it could be of many different theories.

Was there any talk with the authorities about where the actual recovery was made so they could return to it for further expiration?

 

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[E-Trac-Ohio]

Wow ... that's a day you'll remember for sure !

 

[Joe-Dirt]

No thank you!! Me and a buddy were just talking about this yesterday

 

[Smilodon]

Good eye on the recovery and the reporting (gee there hasn't been one of those on the banner yet)

Along river banks was a traditional burial sites for indigenous peoples in many parts.
We found one burial along a river bank over 55yrs ago now. It was determined that blunt force trauma was probably the cause of death as there was a fracture mark in the back of the rear lobe of the skull.
It was also a woman as the teeth were worn nearly flat so age was also a factor. The women gnawed on the hides, sinew, for softening, and other things if I can remember the reasons given at the time, where as the men didn't't and their teeth weren't worn down.

This skull could of had all the teeth and as Smokey pointed out the sockets had not healed.
So from the skull being exposed to the elements the teeth could of come dislocated from the sockets.
Then again it could be of many different theories.

Was there any talk with the authorities about where the actual recovery was made so they could return to it for further expiration?

After I gave them the general location they felt it may be from a jumper. He stated many people have jumped from that bridge and the bodies were never recovered. Originally they stated I had to take them to the exact location that I found the skull but after I explained to him that it was a 2 mile walk in the mud and we would have to wait till low tide, they did not seem that interested. He pulled a map up on his phone and asked me to point out the location and they were satisfied with that. They were also not 100% sure of who had jurisdiction over this skull and also stated if it is part of an active case, much more would be required of me.

 

[Calabash Digger]

That is crazy!! I keep wondering when I am gonna swim up on a body .....I HOPE it never happens..

 

[smokeythecat]

I think I'd cry, literally, if I found that. I found what I THOUGHT was a tiny piece of relatively fresh human leg bone on a beach once. It was only about 3" long, I left it there.

 

[Trezurehunter]

That is quite a find. Yes, I have found a dead body before, but it was in the early Winter and she was murdered and dumped the night before, so there was no decomposition to speak of. I found her in a ditch along a wooded area that borders the parking lot where I parked for work. I thought maybe it was a homeless person that spent the night there to stay out of the wind. The person did not respond to my calls when I asked if she was ok. When I rolled the body over, I realized she was dead, and not sleeping. The police never caught her murderer. She was a known drug user and "lady of the night", according to the police.

 

[Smilodon]

That is quite a find. Yes, I have found a dead body before, but it was in the early Winter and she was murdered and dumped the night before, so there was no decomposition to speak of. I found her in a ditch along a wooded area that borders the parking lot where I parked for work. I thought maybe it was a homeless person that spent the night there to stay out of the wind. The person did not respond to my calls when I asked if she was ok. When I rolled the body over, I realized she was dead, and not sleeping. The police never caught her murderer. She was a known drug user and "lady of the night", according to the police.

Now that would have been the scariest thing, it must be implanted in your memory. did the police or coroner ever contact you after you found that gruesome find? Just wondering to expect in the future. Thanks

 

[Rege-PA]

Trezurehunter.......That is very sad, that some can kill and throw away the body like a piece of trash. This needs to be in another thread but there are thousands of missing people who have been murdered by serial killers and their bodies never found. Some of these killers have done over a hundred victims, some targeted to a specific life style, while others are just random. The ability to travel quickly on the Inter state highways puts the victim in one state and the killer hundreds of miles away in another state within hours. I try to be aware around any situation but I am older and not as trusting as many younger individuals. I like to have a partner when detecting and always a cell phone and I carry. Sorry for the long winded rant but this touched a nerve.

 

[Smilodon]

I spoke with the coroner and did not get much information. I was asked about the location and how I found it and a few other questions. She also stated it was the first isolated skull that has ever come across her office. I was asked what about the location and if anything else was there, how it was transported and other questions like that. I wanted to know the final outcome and was told they called in a forensic anthropologist to help with the Identification and this process takes time.

 

[CASPER-2]

CW soldier?

I knew a guy that found a gold ring on a finger - bone with dry mumified skin
ring was a womens with a stone

 

[Trezurehunter]

Now that would have been the scariest thing, it must be implanted in your memory. did the police or coroner ever contact you after you found that gruesome find? Just wondering to expect in the future. Thanks

The police did contact me for some more detailed info, but the killer was never caught.

 

[Swaveab]

Why is it assumed this body was from dry land? Yes, it could've been a jumper as you've indicated, but this person could've drowned in a boating incident too. Too many boats have sank taking people down with them, but it's possible some eventually get washed up to shore. In any case it's not the kind of find I'd like to have.

BTW, glad you are recovering from covid and not one of the unfortunate statistics of those that didn't make it.

 

[Smilodon]

Why is it assumed this body was from dry land? Yes, it could've been a jumper as you've indicated, but this person could've drowned in a boating incident too. Too many boats have sank taking people down with them, but it's possible some eventually get washed up to shore. In any case it's not the kind of find I'd like to have.

BTW, glad you are recovering from covid and not one of the unfortunate statistics of those that didn't make it.

Not quite sure why the police officer indicated it could be a possible jumper, but he did say it happens more than the public knows. I do agree with the amount of history in this area, makes for many possibilities, Lets just hope the Forensic Anthropologist can add something to aid or solve this mystery.

Thanks for the kind words about the covid recovery. I ended up with pneumonia and high fevers for many days. Well it give me an excuse to go treasure hunting - well as I tell my family, Im getting exercise

 

[Smilodon]

Thanks for the update, The police kept me for many hours asking many questions but they did say they would follow up with me. Hopefully they will catch the person responsible for your gruesome find.

 

[cannonball]

I may have solved your problem; Teeth from about 1830 made with coin silver. They even have a makers mark from the silversmith!

 

[Smilodon]

I may have solved your problem; Teeth from about 1830 made with coin silver. They even have a makers mark from the silversmith!
View attachment 1900972 View attachment 1900973 View attachment 1900974

That is an incredible find, I have never seen anything like that before. Wow, did you find that?

 

[cannonball]

The matching dental plate was found here in New Jersey. After that, I found this 24lb. cannonball about 40 feet away. My detecting buddy and I are still laughing about that day... Question: What did you find ? Answer: My two front teeth!

 

[Gare]

I found a skull in Ms

 

[powrsurg]

I voted banner. If finding it means it will at least get an appropriate burial its worth more than a $50 gold piece.