New Coastal Area Gives Up Some Goodies

[steelheadwill]

Hi Everyone,
An old friend of mine owns properties where the coastline is so steep and rocky
I never considered searching it before.
I came to realize that this would actually be an advantage to landing small craft
as opposed to the acres of mud that are exposed in most areas at low tide.
Some areas here are so full of nails large and small and tiny iron flakes that my detector wouldn't register a 4" brass screw visible on the surface
Cleared some footage with my trusty 250lb magnet and scored some goodies.

Maine State Militia Button. Exceptional condition for salt find of this age,
It came out of the rocks as shown. all that was needed was a freshwater soak.
Granted Statehood in 1820, these large flats were issued shortly thereafter.
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A rather toasty USMC button of the same time frame, these early buttons are scarce because there just weren't many Marines, fewer than 1300 Officers and enlisted up til the CW era
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modern snap type Navy button, BM 'USF' United States Fastener?
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Spanish War era cuff button, BM NS MEYER, I think the wire attached is to secure new buttons
to the card on which they came.... can anyone confirm?


Copper nail headstamped US, in font similar to the 1802 Pewter buttons, another first seen.
Anyone else recover one of these?
View attachment 827680

That's it for Military.

A 14K whatsit, thinking it is an eyeline pencil or similar, some lipsticks I've found have the slot where a pin would be used to push the product up.
Any ideas on this items purpose are welcome
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Numbered pendant with what looks like a young Queen Victoria.


From the edges of yard came pieces of two 8 sided black glass bottles, note sharp lip on neck, similar to the onion I got earlier.
my reference date this style from around 1740.


Buckle parts & other bits, from yard.


Silver ring from yard, crudely made and unmarked, shows 'lamination error' inside as present on a trench art coin ring I recovered, though no other signs of being made from a coin.
Takes a long time for silver to get this deep black patina in local dirt, I think it's quite old.
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Pewter/lead Brooch, maybe a mourning piece? shows two griffins holding an urn.
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Here's a beauty, was setting on the surface where the yard is eroding down onto the beach,
unmarked Silver 32mm lionhead ring, napkin rings were introduced around 1600, and I think that's what this is. likely Victorian/modern. great detail on the face, mane and acanthus leaves.
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Would think this silver item was a broken bracelet, ends show no signs of breakage though


Unmarked Silver cufflink half, the script I looks very much the style of the 1802 pewter US Infantry buttons.
(As with the copper nail.... strange)
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What I believe is the worlds smallest silver coin, thought it to be an oil lamp thumbwheel, but it had the look of saltwater silver, turns out to be an 1896 Guatamalan 1/4 Real. 11mm and .6 G.
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Another world coin, I get more old foreigns than US.
Part and parcel of digging in a seaport/military area.
A 1695 Poltura of Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I, 'The Hogmouth'.
King of Austria, Hungary, and other countries under Papal Rule.
(above 'poltura' is an image of Madonna and Christ child)
This was a tough one to ID, before cleaning the denomination appeared as 'Fultura' and I was getting nowhere with that. Krause lists no 1695 issue, I know that 6's can often appear to be 5's and vice versa, but in this case the 6 shown on other examples could not morph into the 5 displaying on this one, the styles are completely different.
It was recovered at the hillside washout, and likely came down from the yard many years ago.
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Not shown are the dozens of modern coins and a load of copper and brass scrap recovered
in the 10 hours or so I spent on the site.
It's now been cherrypicked and I'm on the hunt for my next area to dig.
Old man Wiley wasn't very interested in what was found, what made him happy was the bag of cod and haddock fillets I delivered after a successful fishing trip.

Thanks for looking and HH everyone
,

 

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[The Patriot]

Great to continue to see your postings...Good mixture of finds there...thanks for sharing..

 

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[steelheadwill]

Love to read your posts and most of all see you finds. So you think that , what l thought was a lions head ring, is a napkin ring? The detail is amazing for a small piece found on the beach. I love it! Don't see rocky beaches in the south like that. Do you make your finds laying on top, moving some rocks or do you have to dig deep in that crap?

Thanks stormsurge and NJLC,
I believe the lion/dog item is a napkin ring because of the size, ID of 31mm, too big for finger,too small for bracelet, any opinions on what else it might be are welcome. read that napkin rings were introduced around 1600.
Recoveries on these rocky shores can be on surface or quite deep.
the rocks are setting on substrate that varies from coarse gravel to sand.
after cherrypicking I'll move some rocks around,
many times I'll just move seaweed, and be surprised by a lobster staring back at me
Ring was found setting on surface at bottom of eroding hillside, on a pile of dirt washed out of yard.
I picked the item up, then set it back where it was and took a couple pix.
the item was behind the green grass at left center in first pic, the hill behind it is nearly vertical. note the broken bricks washing out.
HH all !!!

 

[Silver Searcher]

Excellent finds Will looks like the area is worth a few more hits, perhaps wait for a lower tide, Great pictures to

SS

 

[steelheadwill]

Thanks Patriot and SS !
I'm used to having negative tides uncover large areas, here the difference is not so great,
There is one area where a lot of metal is present right down to waters edge,
and just 6 more inches would help, (I've heard this somewhere before)

The dropoff to deep water and fast current is right there.
The last couple months tides have been the years lowest, (early summer & winter, around the solstices)
Laurie thinks I'm crazy getting up at 2AM
to dig, I think it's great, get in a nice dig, then still have the 'normal' day to work.
Anyone bothered by mosquitos? well there are 'sand fleas' here that are far more irritating, mosquitos drink their fill and leave, don't really bother me, these things come in swarms and just keep biting with more irritation than any mosquitos I've encountered
I just drop the detector, and give a head to toe scratch cause they drive me absolutely crazy

I'll let you know if more goodies show up. HH Everyone

 

[Nutriasub]

What a great day!!! I really love the silver coin, but my favourite is the napkin ring, its beautiful!
congratulations

 

[steelheadwill]

Thanks Nutria! Great to hear from you Best to you and your Family !!

 

[CMDiamonddawg]

quotes " surprised by a lobster staring back at me "

Herbie , your lucky to get a lobster on your beach , in SJ you have to head East toward the Baltimore canyons to get them . I like them grilled on the barbie smothered in artery clogging butter . need a few napkins , there yeah go solved the mystery why the napkin ring was on the beach yeah .. right ,

imo it is a great find , wish i dug it have a good summer dawg

 

[steelheadwill]

quotes " surprised by a lobster staring back at me "

Herbie , your lucky to get a lobster on your beach , in SJ you have to head East toward the Baltimore canyons to get them . I like them grilled on the barbie smothered in artery clogging butter . need a few napkins , there yeah go solved the mystery why the napkin ring was on the beach yeah .. right ,

imo it is a great find , wish i dug it have a good summer dawg

Hey Dawg, Good hearing from you
There are thick piles of seaweed covering some areas, several times I've jumped back cause there's one hiding in there,
if one ever grabbed me I'd be compelled to boil him alive in revenge
Sweet fresh northern lobster is something everyone should get to enjoy, spiney lobsters do not compare.
Best wishes and HH to you! Herbie.

 

[BuckleBoy]

Man, you are killing those coastal areas. Wish I had something like that to hunt down here. That is a serious time span of finds. Love the Maine, the Marines button is a VERY nice find. The small 1/4 real is a once in a lifetime dig, and so is the 1695 coin.

Great showing, my friend.


Cheers,


Buck

 

[CMDiamonddawg]

Hey Dawg, Good hearing from you
There are thick piles of seaweed covering some areas, several times I've jumped back cause there's one hiding in there,
if one ever grabbed me I'd be compelled to boil him alive in revenge
Sweet fresh northern lobster is something everyone should get to enjoy, spiney lobsters do not compare.
Best wishes and HH to you! Herbie.

which one is hiding spiny or Maine type lobsters or either specie , little off topic but I always thought the spiny was tropical or West coast

 

[steelheadwill]

Man, you are killing those coastal areas. Wish I had something like that to hunt down here. That is a serious time span of finds. Love the Maine, the Marines button is a VERY nice find. The small 1/4 real is a once in a lifetime dig, and so is the 1695 coin.

Great showing, my friend.
Cheers,


Buck

Thanks Buck! I absolutely love your PB Spanish, Talk about once in a lifetime
Gonna get on soon and comment more on everyones great finds
I'm into an area that is giving up the early US Militaries, just got two 1820s 25mm Navies, archaeic shield on side of eagle,
I can only find them listed at 15mm in Tice, I know someone uses an example of this button on their avatar, forget who
Best wishes to the Bandits and the Brigade! Your friend, Herbie

 

[steelheadwill]

which one is hiding spiny or Maine type lobsters or either specie , little off topic but I always thought the spiny was tropical or West coast

Hey Dawg, We only have the Homus Americanus clawed lobster up here, I have eaten fresh spineys down south and they don't have the sweetness of the clawed ones.
This is a 6-7 pounder that swallowed a jumbo shrimp and #1 hook I had out for stripers in a 100 ft channel dredged out for oil tankers near the Salem Ma Powerstation, I could not imagine what was on the end of my line while bringing it up,
dead weight, then a strong pulsing fight.....
HH everyone!! Herbie.

 

[BuckleBoy]

Thanks Buck! I absolutely love your PB Spanish, Talk about once in a lifetime
Gonna get on soon and comment more on everyones great finds
I'm into an area that is giving up the early US Militaries, just got two 1820s 25mm Navies, archaeic shield on side of eagle,
I can only find them listed at 15mm in Tice, I know someone uses an example of this button on their avatar, forget who
Best wishes to the Bandits and the Brigade! Your friend, Herbie

Thanks so much my friend. I thought your first Mass coin was a find of a lifetime, but was Way wrong on that one. Let's hope another good find makes its way into my pouch. Until then, I am happy as a clam digging what we're digging. To hit colonial every time out is a blessing, after living in states where it was a rare hunt to find anything that old.

Cheers,

Buck