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Started the colonial silver season off with a BIG splash...a BIG HUNK OF SILVER!!!!

HomeGuardDan

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The land season is present and while I managed to have another solid season of recovering colonial coins from the water, that is now in the rear-view for the next few months.

I started the land season off a couple of weeks ago with a decent splash by recovering the flying eagle penny and the 1500-1600's apostle spoon end. Yesterday was the second trip of the season and I got on the board with a BANG!

My good pal Bill D and I got back to one of our tried and true spots. This place has yielded some killer coins over the past few years and while it is tough going these days, good finds are still hiding. We had a freshly rolled peanut field as an added advantage this year and were excited to get into it.

The day actually started off very slow with the occasional colonial buckle piece and lead blob. Bill began to find a few buttons and as I asked him to slow down he replied "don't worry, I know when I start off like this you end up pulling a silver out." No sooner than he said that, I had a nice target that sounded like silver, but a much higher reading. I had been digging some can slaw and figured it would be another piece, until I saw it pop out of the dirt. A killer 8-bit spanish cob (likely from the mid to early 1600s)! This thing is HUGE (in my D. Trump impression). While the actual width/height is only slightly smaller than a half dollar, it is as thick as a silver dollar and quite hefty!

My day was complete already, though only beginning. I began to recover a few flat buttons and buckles pieces when we were joined by a guest we had invited. We hung out for a few minutes and then the three of us got back at it. Slow and steady was the action for the day as we each continued to dig a few pieces here and there. Towards the end of the day I dug what I knew was going to be another flat button when to my surprise a nice 1830's era U.S. Marine 1-piece button popped out. I actually had never dug a 1-piece marine before and was very happy to add this one to the collection. Shortly after that I recovered a nice late 1600's-early 1700's glass embedded cuff-link with a star design.

My take for the day was 11 buttons, a few musket balls and shot, a civil war C.S. gardner bullet, buckle pieces (including a broken trapezoidal buckle and inlayed from the 1600s-1700s) and other odds and ends (thimble, tacks, etc.). I also managed to recover two nice hammers (one from the late 1700s-early 1800s and the other most likely from the late 1600s-early 1700s.

Our colonial silver competition (Bill D vs Me) is officially on with a 1-0 lead early in the season. I know I will need to build a hefty lead to win back the trophy this year as Bill as not just an able competitor, but the stapled-crown!

HH

Dan
 

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Upvote 76
You always post amazing stuff...thanks for the story and pics.
 
Thanks Cru - not sure I follow on the "brought 1715" line ha.

When I have Wish List Coins, like an old Spanish Cob, I buy an example until I find my first example. At which point I sell the 'filler'.
I thought the coin (cob) was roughly 1715??
 
When I have Wish List Coins, like an old Spanish Cob, I buy an example until I find my first example. At which point I sell the 'filler'.
I thought the coin (cob) was roughly 1715??

gotcha - very cool idea man.

This one is def pre 1700's as it contains the House of Habsburg shield (noted by the diagonal bars in the lower left of the shield which was untouched from 1556-1700). The best matches right now are either Phillip II (1556-1598) or Charles II (1665-1700) due to the two fleur-de-lis in the middle right of the shield.

It is a 4-R after careful weighing.
 
You're off to a great start of the Colonial Season,, that's a great hunt
 
That's just some weird shaped hunk of metal any resemblance to a cob is strictly coincidental. Send it to me and I will authenticate it for you and send you a cast copy in return. Congratulations maybe someday I will find a cob
 
That's just some weird shaped hunk of metal any resemblance to a cob is strictly coincidental. Send it to me and I will authenticate it for you and send you a cast copy in return. Congratulations maybe someday I will find a cob

Ha ha OK man...will put it in the mail tomorrow
 
WOW!!!!!! That is too cool!!!!:occasion14:
 
That is a very nice "chunk" of old silver indeed.

I got to say that the small ones 1/2 or 1 R. cobs don't do a lot for me as coins, and there are many things I'd rather find, but the BIG ones 4, or 8 R are certainly in a different class. In fact this may be the first 4R posted ? So it's in a class of it's own.

That said, don't get me wrong I would be quite happy to get any cob, as I never have yet.
 
That is a very nice "chunk" of old silver indeed.

I got to say that the small ones 1/2 or 1 R. cobs don't do a lot for me as coins, and there are many things I'd rather find, but the BIG ones 4, or 8 R are certainly in a different class. In fact this may be the first 4R posted ? So it's in a class of it's own.

That said, don't get me wrong I would be quite happy to get any cob, as I never have yet.

Rick, I actually understand. Don't get me wrong, I love finding them, but the smaller ones (except for those from the water) typically are so small and worn that it is tough to make out any detail and date..that being said...they are all welcomed into the family! ha ha

4-Rs are rare to find in any of the spanish currency...I can say this is my ONLY 4-R out of all my spanish silver denominations (milled or struck)
 
Nice way to start the year . Congrats on that big hunk of silver
 
Cob is a stunner Dan. Tough to dig one that big. Congrats as well on the nice 1 piece Marine and cufflink. A really nice hunt overall. Hope to get to dig with you this winter or spring.
-Evan

Sorry Evan, did not see this. It was fun for sure and hopefully you can get back out here this year!
 
amazing start to the season!!, awesome silver!!!
 
I can't figure out what the chunky looking item with the hole showing beside the thimble in the second to the last photo is?
 
I can't figure out what the chunky looking item with the hole showing beside the thimble in the second to the last photo is?

It is a big piece of carved lead. I initially though a crudely made pipe bowl as it is tappered inside like one, but the bore is still too large. I am thinking now just a carved tube/spout for some purpose.
 
C'mon people. This is a 4 reale cob. Who else on here has one in their collection. Heck. Only a handful have any cobs at all. Obvious banner
 
C'mon people. This is a 4 reale cob. Who else on here has one in their collection. Heck. Only a handful have any cobs at all. Obvious banner

Thanks for the vote of confidence man. They are fairly uncommon finds, the book I mentioned earlier in the post contains the counts of denominations recovered from the FL treasure fleet and the 4R is actually the second and/or first (even over 8R) recoveries from each of the dozens of wrecks. But I have long realized that far less people are as excited about american colonial items than other items...but I love it regardless ha ha
 

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