Old Homestead Finds - No Coins yet!

ANTIQUARIAN · Oct 18, 2015

I got back to a site early Sunday morning that I'd first detected this past spring, then again three weeks ago. But when I was driving by this week, I noticed the farmer had done a deep plow! I decided that it was worth one more try... at least until the spring when the corn will be rolled for the planting. :thumbsup:

My first find was a frozen dirtball which contained a bent up spoon, then came a decorated two-piece button, a couple of buckles (one iron & one brass with a silver wash). Then came the fork and an unusual bent up piece of brass, which I almost tossed into the scrap bucket in the truck until I noticed an engraved design in one corner. So when I got home I carefully straightened it out... I think it might have been the inside of an early Ambrotype photograph. :icon_scratch:

The ambrotype, also known as a collodion positive in the UK, is a positive photograph on glass made by a variant of the wet plate collodion process. Like a print on paper, it is viewed by reflected light. Like the daguerreotype, which it replaced, and like the prints produced by a Polaroid camera, each is a unique original that could only be duplicated by using a camera to copy it. The ambrotype was introduced in the 1850s. During the 1860s, it was superseded by the tintype, a similar photograph on thin black-lacquered iron, hard to distinguish from an ambrotype if under glass.

Also included pics of what I feel are the barn foundations on site and a picture of an ambrotype picture. Both the fork and spoon are marked 'Nevada Mfg., I find this makers cutlery often here in Ontario, they're heavy and well-made pieces of brass.

Thanks very much for looking,
Dave

PS. The last picture is of the woman I should've married! :laughing7:

Old Dude · Oct 18, 2015

Beautiful young lady, you old scalawag :tongue3:

. I would not be remorseful about no coins with all the relics. They will probably show up now that you've cleaned the site a bit. Good finds Dave.

ANTIQUARIAN · Oct 19, 2015

Old Dude said:
Beautiful young lady, you old scalawag. I would not be remorseful about no coins with all the relics. They will probably show up now that you've cleaned the site a bit. Good finds Dave.

Thanks very much Dave, although I prefer the term 'Dirty old Dog'! :laughing7:

Take care buddy,
Dave

pepperj · Oct 19, 2015

Nice looking button even though when you showed the picture in the text I was hoping that you got a military being the dome, oh well. Is the foundation the house or barn Dave, sometimes the field is on the side and the yard is on the other so there's little or no coin drops. Still some relics to play with and nice job of straightening the frame out dog.

ANTIQUARIAN · Oct 21, 2015

Old Dude said:
Beautiful young lady, you old scalawag. I would not be remorseful about no coins with all the relics. They will probably show up now that you've cleaned the site a bit. Good finds Dave.

I sure hope the relics improve here Dave. :icon_scratch:

Don't get me wrong I love finding the everyday relics at these sites, but we all wish that something more personal would show up right?!

I just hope that when the soil gets rolled for the spring planting that something more interesting pops up. :thumbsup:

Dave

pepperj said:
Nice looking button even though when you showed the picture in the text I was hoping that you got a military being the dome, oh well. Is the foundation the house or barn Dave, sometimes the field is on the side and the yard is on the other so there's little or no coin drops. Still some relics to play with and nice job of straightening the frame out dog.

I hear you about the detail on the button Jim, I'm now thinking it might be an overall button as opposed to a two-piece button. :dontknow:

I think I'll take your advice and hit the east side of the barn foundations, as there are little to no metal signals on the west side of the house.
Dave

against the wind · Oct 22, 2015

Nice hunt, , that picture frame is nicely detailed, , I know that girl,, P.S. 47,, Up in the Bronx,, lol

pepperj · Oct 22, 2015

ANTIQUARIAN said:
I hear you about the detail on the button Jim, I'm now thinking it might be an overall button as opposed to a two-piece button.
I think I'll take your advice and hit the east side of the barn foundations, as there are little to no metal signals on the west side of the house.
Dave

I've hit a few foundations from the old mapping system, turned out to be just a barn as they seemed to use one side as a dump to get rid of the trash. No coinage, just tack, glass, and brass. If there's nothing on the other side of the bard foundation I'd be hitting every little rise in the field where the house might of sat on higher ground.

BTW if you did marry that gal you wouldn't be out detecting buddy. :laughing7:

ANTIQUARIAN · Oct 22, 2015

pepperj said:
I've hit a few foundations from the old mapping system, turned out to be just a barn as they seemed to use one side as a dump to get rid of the trash. No coinage, just tack, glass, and brass. If there's nothing on the other side of the bard foundation I'd be hitting every little rise in the field where the house might of sat on higher ground.

BTW if you did marry that gal you wouldn't be out detecting buddy.

If I had married that girl, I'd have five kids by now and wouldn't have time to detect! :laughing9: