LOST TREASURE - DECEMBER 2017

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Newsletter–December 19, 2017

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December 19, 2017

FEATURE CLUB

Feature Club — page 4

FAVORITE FINDS

page 21 — Favorite Finds

OTHER FEATURES

3 The Coined Phrase
6 Tips From the Pros
8 Special Bonus Feature From
Lost Treasure Magazine

14 THers' News
22 Calendar of Events

2 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 12-19-17

LostTreasure The Coined Phrase

CELEBRATING OUR 50th YEAR By Carla Nielsen

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Feature Club

The 52nd Annual Rock,
Mineral & Jewelry Show

March 10th – 11th
Turlock, California

The 52nd Annual Rock, Mineral make beautiful jewelry out of natural and over 40 dealers selling rocks,
& Jewelry Show, a family event, will rocks and gemstones from demon- minerals, fossils, jewelry, beads &
be held at the Stanislaus Fairgrounds, strators. supplies, and much, much more.
900 N. Broadway, from 10 a.m. to 5
p.m. daily.  There will also be Children’s For more info, contact Bud
Activities, including making your & Terry McMillin at (209) 524-
Rocks, Minerals, Fossils, Jewelry, own bracelet and carving soapstone.  3494, e-mail  bud.mcmillin.b7yj@
Beads, Fluorescents and more will statefarm.com or log onto the web-
be featured and on display! Learn to There will be a huge, newly site at www.turlockgemshow.com
expanded fluorescent display room

4 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 12-19-17

Feature Club cont'd...

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This offer expires December 31st 2017.

www.LostTreasure.com Newsletter 12-19-17 5

Tip From the Pros

Relics From An Uncivil Time
By Jay Pastor

Many of the more than a You can identify them via that it exists.
thousand types of bullets your own explorations or by And if they have heard of it,
fired or lost during the Civil referring to historic documents don’t know how to get to a copy.
War are still being found by such as War of the Rebellion:
metal detectors - and not only a Compilation of the Official Yet, these fascinating
south of the Mason-Dixon Line. Records of the Union and multi-volume sets are not
Although treasure hunting Confederate Armies (or
simply, the OR) published difficult to locate.
historic battle fields is They’re sold (expensive) by
usually illegal (for good by the U.S. Government. Amazon or equivalent book
No serious study of the stores, and also can be found
reasons), deserted American Civil War is in the Reference Rooms of
quartermaster storage most large public libraries.
buildings, military supply complete without
train wreck areas, troop consulting the OR. Portions have even been
campsites, conventional digitized for display on the
resting spots during the It’s the most Internet, as part of an ongoing
long marches, bivouac comprehensive, effort by federal historians.
locations, and firing ranges authoritative, and voluminous They’re a valuable resource
used in basic-training are publication of its kind. that usually winds up steering
Unfortunately, most treasure interested detector-slingers
still fair game. hunters are not even aware
to productive sites.

6 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 12-19-17

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How To
Identify
Ancient

Coins

By Bill Gallagher

Three nice Roman reverses showing Latin inscriptions and deities in good detail.

There is great opportunity right open to trade through the mail. and that formula equals treasure
now in collecting ancient coins. Other sites online that deal in sales every time.

Never before have so many of ancient coins are also good sourc- My first experience with ancient
authentic and exceptional artifacts es for your ancient coin endeavors. coins happened after I bought a few
been available from the Old World, small lots of them on an Internet auc-
and at very good prices. In spite of this great opportu- tion site and began restoring them.
nity, many would-be collectors of
This is mostly because of metal ancients are discouraged because of I had a lot of experience in metal
detecting and a good way to learn the hurdles encountered while try- conservation from my prior metal
about what’s going on is to make ing to make sense of coins from all detecting activities and my experi-
some international friends, via the over the world whose origins are ments paid off.
Internet, among the many metal numerous, very old, and sometimes
detecting clubs worldwide. difficult to discern. Through electrolytic stripping I
was starting to get mint state coins
Most metal detectorists overseas This difficulty is much smaller from round blobs of dirt, and some
are very friendly and some are even than the possible rewards though, were actually almost unbelievable in

68 LLOOSSTT TTRREEAASSUURREE NJeuwlys2le0t1te7r 12-19-17

their fineness. A grouping of ancient coins from Europe and the Middle East found with metal
I then became a dealer of ancient detectors and conserved in America with electronic methodology.

coins, though I made a rule for
myself early that I would not ever
sell a coin that was not identified,
attributed.

That stemmed from making a few
memorable mistakes where I sold
some really rare types for a lot less
than they were worth.

I began studying to identify my
coins, but the books to do that were
quite a lot more expensive than the
coins themselves back in the begin-
ning of the Internet.

It took more money and a lot of
time to collect my library, but today’s
collectors do not have to bother with
all that because almost all coin books
ever published, at least about ancient
coins, are now online or on CD free,
or for just a few dollars.

The CD collections of old coin
books are many times in German
or French, but still usable because
of the illustrations and because the
non-English words can easily be
translated with computers.

These free or inexpensive books
can be obtained wherever the coins
are sold, usually, or by using the
many search engines available.

After I got good at cleaning my
ancient coins I wrote a small pam-

An anonymous Follis from Byzantium, phlet on coin conservation that met recovered there will be no more
c.11th century. This is Miriam, Orans, with some acclaim. bonanza days.
and the obverse of this coin (obliterate)
is a nimbate portrait of the rabbi Yeshva Obviously I did this to make That’s the main reason the timing
ben Miriam. money, thereby financing my coin is right for starting your collection
acquisitions, but also to set some now.
things straight, because the accepted
methods in vogue at that time left a The first thing I learned about
lot to be desired. identifying my ancient coins was
this: some are readable, meaning the
It even appeared that some of the letters were mostly of the type from
people selling the ancient uncleaned the modern alphabet. These were the
coins were willfully misinforming Romans, and the subsequent
their buyers in an effort to keep over-
all populations low. Byzantine coins, though many of
the Byzantine coins had Greek char-
This is not farfetched either, see- acters as well as Latin.
ing as some coins which used to go
in the $100 to $900 range now sell Even though the inscriptions are
for $5 to $45, because metal detec- in Latin on the Romans, it was not
tors have blessed the collecting com- hard to make sense of them as long
munity with much greater numbers. as I could see the lettering, or even
parts of it.
No worries though: rarity will
once again establish itself as the col- A lot of ancients do not possess
lector base broadens substantially, full inscriptions because they were
and once most of the old coins are hammer stamped and there are many
odd strikes.

www.LostwTrwewas.Luorest.TcoremasNuerew.scloemtterJu1l2y-1290-1177 97

Also there are bona fide Greek

coins which predate the Roman

types, and though many real Greeks

do carry inscriptions, the actual

Greek types are more known for

their art and are more identifiable

because of that.

Greek types are heavy and show

their hammered origins better, as a

rule, and they also exhibit extreme

age when dug from the earth.

Books are an absolute necessi-

ty when identifying ancient Greek

coins, or Roman Greek Imperial

coinage.

Cup style coins of the Latin Crusaders, fourth Crusade, I did get a lot of good help from
c. 1204-1260AD. Constantinople. The coin on the right is teachers of the Greek language
smashed flat, but an excellent example of the type. online, FYI.

The best resource I know of con-

cerning Greek Imperial Coins is a

The second thing I learned is that, only thing you can take from here is book of that name by David Sear,

besides the inscriptions, the reverse knowledge. who also publishes books on Roman

deities, or the obverse portraits, The type and quality of your coins and Byzantine coins.

many times allowed me to attribute knowledge is strictly up to you, My favorite book on Byzantine

a coin when a partial inscription was though I believe it has long term coins, which includes the coins of

just not readable. consequences. the Latin Crusaders, is by Philip

There are usually slogans on the It is the only real thing. The rest is Grierson, a Dumbarton Oaks publi-

reverse as well, around the edge, and illusion and distraction. cation.

if the obverse is not readable some- Some Roman coins were minted Abebooks.com is a great resource

times the reverse is. in outlying mints, conquered territo- for books, and eBay, too. Search the

One must also become famil- ries, and a lot of those carry Greek title and author, then search price.

iar with some mint marks that are inscriptions. Usually there are multiple copies

almost always on the reverse of Those ancient coin types are of anything available, with prices

ancient coins, when they are there generally termed “Greek Imperial” ranging from very high to very low,

at all. coins. sometimes dependent on the book’s

The Roman and the later

Byzantine empires follow this rule

fairly closely.

Another significant factor when

identifying ancient coins is that

there is a very long amount of time

involved in issuing of the various

types, which means centuries.

Roman coins encompassed over

four centuries and many rulers, and

the Byzantine types even more,

almost 10 centuries.

This is what makes identification

so daunting in the beginning, but the

satisfaction of finally nailing one

down is such that it will lead the col-

lector ever onward, and after a while

it almost becomes second nature.

This will take some years, and can

only be hurried by study, but there is

no other activity in numismatics so

intellectually enriching.

It’s all about how you choose to An average uncleaned lot from Europe purchased very reason-

empower yourself. Remember: the ably on the Internet.

180 LOLOSSTTT TRREEAASSUURREEJNuelyw2s0le1t7ter 12-19-17

condition, but sometimes not.

The real trick of this matter rests

upon the fact mentioned above:

many sites now exist online for iden-

tification of ancient coins, and in a

lot of cases purchase of the books

can be bypassed.

Start by searching wildwinds.

com, and also plugging in the name

of the coins you are interested in,

then adding PDF as the last search

term.

PDF stands for Portable Document

Format, and these can usually be

downloaded as electronic books.

Google is loaded with old books

in their books section, and some can

even be downloaded free.

Finally, throw a quick descrip- Three early Islamic coins from an uncleaned lot. C 900

tion of the coin in the search engine, AD.

even partial mottoes or legends, and

choose to search images versus text. all across Europe from BC times dots for letters and that is a tell-tale

You will be surprised how easy until well after the end of Rome, sign of a barbaric imitation, a Celtic

and truly fruitful some searches though almost all Celtic coins imi- strike imitating Greek or Roman

become. tated Greek and Roman coins. types.

Some of the later Byzantine coins Again, books online are neces- A neat thing about Celtic coins

are termed “Trachea,” or cup coins sary for your search of Celtic coins, is that the Celts did not have good

and these can be a real challenge, but once you begin to see them it’s metal refining techniques, and some

but they actually represent a small like riding a bike - you never forget Celtic “Bronzes” are really what is

time period and appear a lot more and they become easy to identify, called “Red Gold,” a low karat gold

complex than they really are. even though there are many imita- stamped right from collected rough

The problem with many of them tive types. nuggets.

is that they are very rude, crude and Celtic coins, especially the small- I have found three gold coins in

uncouth because they are really imi- er, later versions, are many times my life, all were in lots of ancient

tations of Byzantine types. so abstract they are called barbaric coins purchased as bronze lots, and

They occurred within the last 250 imitations. one was a red gold Celtic.

years of the empire and derive from Because the Celts of the time I always try to buy the culls, or

some of the early Celtic stampings. were not too literate, sometimes, junk, because that is where most

Celtic coin types were minted even many times, they substituted dealers put the very rarest types that

are hard to identify; they are true

sub hoards, for your information and

delight, dear reader.

Once the Byzantine Empire

crashed and burned a lot of coin-

age became highly devolved across

Europe -smaller, lighter, and lacking

the aesthetic perfection achieved by

the Greeks and Romans.

Also, Islam ascended in some

places and they are the most chal-

lenging of all the types (other than

oriental coins) because private coin

makers of Islam used presses and

rollers to make coins in a willy nilly

kind of way - made to order, if you

Three coins of Andronicus II, Byzantium, c. 1325AD, very rare. will.
Even fragments and holed coins from that era are very valuable. You took your metal to them and
Many times coins were broken to make change during the dark
they took a percentage for making

ages. your coins.

www.LostTwrewawsu.Lroes.ctTormeaNseuwres.lceottmer J1u2l-y192-01177 119

Three rare medieval coins from an uncleaned lot. Average modern value of these an area was conquered by Crusaders,
is $75 each. All are less than 10mm and under 1/2 gram. or the like, who then copied the local
coinage, but embellished with what
They were licensed or permitted tion. From the date one may ascer- they thought would be nice.
to do this by the leadership. Portraits tain the ruler.
or other identifying images were Islamic coins with images and
against the religion, so you have lots If you get interested in Islamic or portraits are very rare and valuable.
of squiggles and seemingly mean- Oriental types, run, don’t walk, to Due to age in general, the more fine
ingless marks that are many times zeno.ru and read, read, read. a coin is the rarer it is, too.
just incomplete legends.
The scholars there will help you; Not only is ancient coin collecting
Again though, these coins seem they are sincere in their purpose and a great opportunity right now, but it’s
a lot harder than they are, most of there is no other coin site online as probable this short window of time
the time. comprehensive for the types of coins will be looked upon by the future as
mentioned above. a true treasure trove.
Once you gain a working knowl-
edge everything works out well, for Because of the diversity among Hopefully this article has clarified
the most part. It is not really rocket ancient coinages, there are a lot some things that will allow some
science. of rarities, relatively speaking, who were not aware to take advan-
although these rarities do not follow tage of a good thing which will not
The first thing you need to know the same rules as modern, machine last forever, by any means.
about Islamic types is the numbering made coinages.
system, which is not hard to learn Best of luck in your collecting
and is in some ways quite similar to Brockages, double stampings and adventures and, if the chance pres-
our present day numerals. the like were much more common ents itself, don’t forget to thank our
during ancient times, when most counterparts overseas for cutting us
When identifying Islamic coins coin making teams consisted of three in.
dates are all important, and a lot of men who could put out thousands of
times are the only readable inscrip- coins in a day…with hammers! Sources:
“Handbook of Roman Imperial
A very rare Artukid type imitating So odd stampings are not very Coins,” David Van Meter
Greek or Roman Imperial Greek on the rare unless they possess an inverted “Coins of the Crusader States,”
obverse (two facing portraits), though figure on a normal field, or some- Malloy
imitating Byzantine on the Reverse. thing like that. “Byzantine Coins,” Philip
Notice the Islamic lettering on the Grierson
reverse legend, c550AD. The rarities of the past consist “Byzantine Coins,” David Sear
of things like an emperor who only “Greek Imperial Coins,” David
lived for a few months with a cor- Sear
respondingly low mintage. Wildwinds.com
zeno.ru
Some of the Roman females google.com
coins, wives or empresses, are very
rare, and the Romans sometimes A 6 Kreutzer dated 1795 from an
literally obliterated the remembrance uncleaned lot, middle Europe, AR (sil-
of an emperor who totally ran afoul ver).
of the upper class, though that idea
backfired, historically speaking.

When the collected goods of the
bad emperor were later discovered
they became highly coveted due to
rarity, so the bad emperor became
a very good emperor, to collectors
at least.

Also there were things like por-
traits or images of animals on a few
of the Islamic coins, occurring after

102 LOST TREASURE NJeuwlys2le0t1te7r 12-19-17

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THers' News

Photos courtesy of http://mysteriousuniverse.org/2017/09/ghost-ship-crewed-by-mannequins-washes-up-in-florida/

‘Ghost Ship’ Crewed By their shoreline nearly two weeks Courtesy of http://mysteriou-
Mannequins Washes after the hurricane made landfall. suniverse.org/2017/09/ghost-ship-
Up in Florida crewed-by-mannequins-washes-up-
The recent pair of hurricanes that The boat appears to have washed in-florida/
ravaged America’s southern coast- up in the night.
lines was significant not only for Submitted by Len Myers.
their awesome strength and size, but The ship is a 45-foot sailboat
also for the anomalous phenomena named “Cuki” and appears to have Scientists Unravel Story
which coincided with the storms. been abandoned for some years based of 1740 Kent Shipwreck
People around the world heard on the rusted, antiquated equipment Covered with seaweed, bits of
strange noises in the sky ahead of the left aboard. shell and pebbles concreted into
storms, and the hurricanes dredged lumps of corroded iron, the wooden
up strange wonders from beneath the Strangest of all? The only occu- seaman’s chest from the Dutch East
seas and under the ground. pants of the boat appear to be two India ship Rooswijk remains tan-
The massive storm surges from mannequins. talizingly locked after almost 300
both storms left a variety of bizarre- years.
looking sea creatures stranded on The mannequins have remained It will take months of conserva-
land, some of which sparked intense loyal to their ship staying aboard tion work before the archaeologists
online speculation about what the despite onlookers poking around discover whether it holds some of
might be. below deck. the silver treasure the ship was carry-
An ancient wooden canoe was ing, or a long dead sailor’s old socks.
also found in Florida which could be “Earlier today when I was out A joint excavation by divers and
up to 6,000-years-old. here, there were two mannequins on scientists from Historic England
Perhaps strangest of all, however, board. They survived it, too. So to and the Cultural Heritage Agency
is a mysterious “ghost ship” discov- me, that’s incredible that they sur- of the Netherlands is unravelling
ered recently in Florida. vived that journey in a Category 5 the story of the last hours of the
“It looks like a ghost ship. Looks hurricane,” said Tom Tobin, a char- Rooswijk, which ran aground and
rough. It looks like it’s been aban- ter pilot who lives near the area of sank in the Goodwin Sands off Kent
doned a while.” shoreline where the boat was found. in January 1740 with the loss of
That’s how Palm Bay resident every life on board – almost 250
Deena McCollum described the Some reports state the boat is sailors, soldiers and passengers.
eerie sight discovered in the wake of registered to an incarcerated pris- Finds brought ashore in Ramsgate
Hurricane Irma. oner from Key West, while oth- include a shoe still showing the dint
Residents of Melbourne Beach, ers claim that boat is registered out of the sailor’s heel on the instep,
Florida, found the ship stranded on of New Rochelle, NY. glass bottles and a fancy wine glass
with an air twist stem, which must
The mannequins aren’t saying
much about how they got there and
what they were doing aboard, so
authorities aren’t quite sure how the
boat managed to wash up ashore or
where it came from.

14 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 12-19-17

THers' News continued...

also show that those who couldn’t

afford silver were bringing any kind

of scrap metal they could lay hands

on, knowing it would all have a

value at their destination.

In 1740 it was months before any-

one wondered what had happened to

the Rooswijk, and it was only when

the ship failed to make landfall at

the Cape of Good Hope, after what

should have been months at sea, that

the company began to worry.

A chest of letters washed up on

the English coast revealed the truth:

An image from 1716 of a ship likely to have been similar to the Rooswijk. the ship, only a few years old and
Photograph: Fries Scheepvaartmuseum/PA. Photos courtesy of https://www. on her second voyage, having left
theguardian.com/science/2017/aug/18/treasure-and-intrigue-scientists-unrav- Amsterdam on 7 January, had been
driven by a storm the next day on
el-story-of-1740-kent-shipwreck.
to the Goodwin, the dreaded Ship

have come from the captain’s cabin, The first finds of silver scattered Swallower, which has claimed the

pewter jugs, an onion jar, tiles from in small quantities throughout the lives of thousands of seafarers – a

the cooking stove still scorched by wreckage are bearing this out, and 19th-century steam ship lies on the

the last meal, three wooden chests,

one human thigh bone – and some

genuine old-fashioned treasure in STANDARD DIGGING TOOL
the form of beautiful Mexican sil-
ver dollars, minted just a few years

before the wreck, and older, cruder TREASURE HUNTERS DON’T MISS A DEAL LIKE THIS!!!
chopped-up pieces of eight.
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Several cannon and two huge sea
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A quantity of silver was sal-
vaged in 2005 and returned to the
Dutch government, which owns the
wreck, but the project leader, Martijn

Martens, maritime cultural heritage * Cuts through any roots Steel, Heat Treated
manager at the Netherlands agency, and Tempered.
said it had no idea how much silver
* Digs through
was on board. 

“We have many questions,” any type of ground
Martens said. “We do not even know * Ideally suited for Metal
what this ship really looked like.” Detecting, Camping,

The ship was bound for Jakarta

to buy spices and porcelain and was Nursery and Landscaping
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the East Indies than in Amsterdam, Plus you get a handy Cadorra Belt Holder with
and smuggling – at every level, from plastic insert to carry the standard digging tool.
a chestful in an officer’s cabin to a

few coins stitched into a sailor’s belt The belt loop is 3 1/2”
– was a well-known way of supple-

menting wages.

www.LostTreasure.com Newsletter 12-19-17 15

THers' News continued...

Coins found in the wreck of the Rooswijk. Photograph: Pewter spoons found during excavation work. Photograph:
Zeeuws maritime muZEEum/PA Lauren Hurley/PA

seabed 100 meters from the 18th- The ship is an officially protected first to be scientifically excavated.
The excavation was judged urgent
essful cTeHnetrusryGtuhirdeee-BmWas1t_e2r.pg color.qxd 2/7w/2r0e1c2k s1it1e:1b7eAcMausPeagoef 1its historic
because the deep silty sand that has
The evidence from the wreck site importance. protected the remains for so long is
shifting now due to changing tidal
is that the heavily laden ship sank Of the 250 Dutch East India ships patterns, leaving timbers exposed

like a stone, with the loss of every- known to have been wrecked, only a

one on board. third has been located and this is the

SUCCESSFUL TREASURE HUNTERS GUIDE

This collection of vital treasure
hunting material includes:

- “The Successful Treasure Hunter’s Guide”, a book filled with great how-
to information;
- A dozen research forms, which give you a specific plan for research;
- A dozen entry-search agreements, which help you make an agreement to
search with the land owner.
- A dozen treasure inventory forms, which help you keep track of your
finds for future hunts on the site.

Click on this ad to $24.95
order OnLine

Call today 800-423-0029 Ext 2
or send your order to:

LTI Publications, Inc. P.O. Box 451589
Grove, OK 74345 (Please include tel # for mail in orders)

16 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 12-19-17

THers' News continued...
ologist at Historic England, said guardian.com/science/2017/aug/18/
it was in discussions with Dover, treasure-and-intrigue-scientists-
and though the Rooswijk lies some unravel-story-of-1740-kent-ship-
distance from the proposed dredg- wreck.
ing area, it would be monitoring its
condition and the other protected Submitted by Len Myers.
wrecks.
Metal Detectorists
Courtesy of https://www.the- Unearth Unique

Photo courtesy of www.theguard- Click the blue ad above & order your copy of the
ian.com/science/2017/sep/27/metal-
detectorists-unearth-unique-hoard-of- Treasure Hunter’s Logbook

roman-artefacts#img-1 or call 800-423-0029 ext. 2

and decaying – and vulnerable to www.LostTreasure.com Newsletter 12-19-17 17
treasure hunters.

It may never be possible, or even
desirable, to open the mystery chest.
Conventional x-rays often don’t
reveal much of heavily concreted
objects.

Angela Middleton, a conservation
expert at Historic England, hopes to
persuade the customs authorities to
bring along one of the scanners they
use at the port to check for people
and goods hidden in Lorries, and see
if it shows up anything.

“We might find out it is impossible
to open the chest without destroying
it. Or we might find out what is in it
and decide it’s just not worth even
trying to open it,” she said.

Manders described the Goodwin
Sands as “a treasure trove for archae-
ologists”.

There have been protests over
plans by the Dover port authority to
dredge there to improve the shipping
channel and also extract sand and
gravel for docks development work.

The sands also became the last
resting place of many downed Battle
of Britain air crew, and others lost in
the Second World War.

Sir Mark Rylance, who starred in
the recent blockbuster film Dunkirk,
described the proposal as disrespect-
ful and insensitive.

Alison James, a maritime archae-

THers' News continued...
Hoard of Artifacts covered Roman temple may be sited said: "It’s not every day you come
The find, which includes a ‘lick- elsewhere in the county. across a hoard of Roman bronze.
ing’ dog sculpture never before
found in Britain, is being kept under The artifacts appear to have been "We have been metal detecting
special conditions for insurance rea- deliberately broken and hidden – for a combined 40 years, but this is a
sons with the exception of the dog statue, once in a lifetime discovery.
A lucky metal detector enthusi- which remains intact.
ast’s breathtaking find is a first in "As soon as I realized the items
British history, according to archae- Archaeologists believe the items were of historical significance I con-
ologists. could have been stashed by a metal tacted the local archaeology team,
A hoard of ancient Roman bronze worker who intended to retrieve who were equally excited by the
artifacts includes a sculpture of a them at a later date in order to melt find.
“licking” dog never found before in and re-cast them.
Britain. "It’s a great privilege to be able
The 4th-century discov- The artifacts are of such signifi- to contribute to local and British
ery was made by metal detector- cance that they need to be kept under history.”
ists Pete Cresswell and his broth- special conditions for insurance rea-
er-in-law Andrew Boughton in sons, and are currently being stored Archaeologist Kurt Adams, the
Gloucestershire. at Bristol museum, where they are Gloucestershire and Avon finds liai-
The licking dog is an example of a being photographed and catalogued son officer, said:
healing statue, and may be linked to on an online database.
a Roman healing temple at Lydney. “This Roman hoard dates to the
Experts said there was also the Experts are piecing together the 4th century and mostly contains
possibility that a previously undis- clues, and the findings will be pre- items that have been deliberately
sented by the British Museum at broken, ranging from small vessel
a launch event likely to take place fittings to a large bronze statue.
around the end of the year.
“Most amazing of all is a com-
Cresswell, from Gloucestershire, plete and finely detailed standing
dog statue, which is a unique find for

18 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 12-19-17

THers' News continued...
lover Cleopatra in Egypt and experts Mike. Dad-of-one Mike, a fisherman
said a find of this size and variety is from Plymouth, Devon, said:
very rare.
“It was incredible, a true once-in-
The coins will be handed over to a-lifetime find. 
the coroner for valuation and then
likely sold to a museum, with the “I had a good idea about what it
profits split between the farmer and was - I had already found one or two
Roman denarii that morning. 

SECURITY
WARNING DECALS

Hundreds of Roman denarii have been Protect Yourself and
found by Mike Scale during a metal Your Belongings!

detectors event (Image: SWNS) Photos Protect Your Detectors
courtesy of http://www.plymouthher- and Your Property!
ald.co.uk/news/plymouth-news/plym-
outh-man-finds-200000-coins-553249 • Heavy duty vinyl self-adhesive decal’s warn that your
property is protected by ELECTRONIC AUTOMATIC
British archaeology.” ALARM SYSTEM.
The exact location of the discov- • Frighten burglars away.
• Apply easily to glass, metal, plastic or wood.
ery is not being disclosed. • Ideal for home, apartment, car, truck, factory, ware-
Courtesy of Photo courtesy house, equipment, store or boats.
• Great low-cost security system.
of www.theguardian.com/sci- • Color decal’s 2 3/4” x 1 3/4”
ence/2017/sep/27/metal-detectorists- • 1 pkg = 4 decal’s for only $3.00 includes s&h
unearth-unique-hoard-of-roman-
artefacts#img-1 Click on this ad to order OnLine
or call 800-423-0029 Ext 2
Submitted by Len Myers.
www.LostTreasure.com Newsletter 12-19-17 19
Plymouth Man Finds
£200,000 of Coins In
A Farmer’s Field
An amateur historian digging in
a farmer’s field has told how he
found a once-in-a-lifetime hoard of
2,000-year-old Roman silver coins -
worth up to £200,000. 
Mike Smale, 35, found the hoard
of 600 rare denarii in a farmer’s field
in Bridport while hunting with his
pals from the Southern Detectorists
club. 
A single one can sell for up to
£900 so the fisherman was aston-
ished when he uncovered one pris-
tine coin after another dating back to
32BC. Some of the metal disks were
minted during the era Roman gen-
eral Mark Antony was allied with his

THers' News continued...
who only ruled for three months in
The education minister of Schleswig-Holstein Karin Prien presenting (January to April AD 69), during the
the ring brooch [Credit: DPA] Photo courtesy of https://archaeologyne- civil wars which followed the assassi-
wsnetwork.blogspot.com/2017/09/rare-silver-treasures-from-viking-age. nation of the notorious emperor Nero. 

html#YRMSbC5mCxc2Ojf8.99 “Coin finds such as this are fasci-
nating, and are incredibly important
“When I dug a hole I saw two weren’t of the same caliber.  in shedding light on the history of
coins sticking out the bottom of it, so “I was elated and shaking because Roman Britain”
I called Sean over to have a look at it. 
this is a once in a lifetime find. Courtesy of http://www.plym-
“It’s a great find, my biggest one, “The archaeologists excavating it outhherald.co.uk/news/plym-
but I shan’t be giving it up. It’s great outh-news/plymouth-man-finds-
fun and I’m sticking with it.  couldn’t believe what they were see- 200000-coins-553249
ing because these coins are so rare. 
“When I found it everyone came Submitted by Len Myers.
over to have a look and find out what “I personally think a find of this
it was. It’s impossible to say what it’s size and variety will never be found Rare Silver Treasures
worth, it all depends on too many fac- again.”  From Viking Age
tors. How rare they are, what condi- Discovered
tion they are in, things like that.  An expert who has examined pho- Archaeologists presented the find-
tos of the coins said some featur- ings - including a ring brooch - dis-
“But it is a substantial find, and ing Gods were issued by the Roman covered on the north German island
whatever I do get I’m going to split Republic in the centuries before the of Sylt to the public recently.
with the guys I went up there with.”  birth of Christ.  “This is one of the largest ever
silver treasure troves from Schleswig-
The astonishing find was made at Numismatist - coin expert - Holstein,” said Claus von Carnap-
an undisclosed farmland location in Dominic Chorney said: Bornheim, head of the state’s archae-
Bridport at the detectorists’ annual ological office.
event, attended by 300 people.  “Others, which feature a distinc- In the summer, experts dug up a
tive galley - a type of Roman vessel total of 180 pieces of silver jewelry
Just a few hours in Mike’s detec- - were minted by Mark Antony while on Sylt.
tor started beeping manically and he was allied with his lover Cleopatra The pieces included preserved
he quickly discovered a few coins, in Egypt, between the autumn of 32 pieces of jewelry such as bracelets,
before he called over the officials who BC to the spring of 31.  finger rings and a neck ring. Coins
sectioned off the area. and ingots were also found.
“They each celebrate the various Decades ago, a farmer found a
They believe it was a pot of coins legions under his command. Antony’s silver ring brooch made on a Sylt
which had been hit by a plough and coins circulated widely in the Roman field. In 2015, the farmer’s family
spread across the area.  Empire, and have certainly travelled bequeathed the piece to their doctor,
a long way.  who gave it to local archaeologists.
The event was organized by Sean After determining the area where
MacDonald, 47, who admits he would “Republican coins and those the find had been discovered, the
have paid “good money” just to wit- of Antony were issued before the archaeologists in Schleswig-Holstein
ness the find.  Roman Invasion of Britain in AD 43, started digging.
and would have drifted over in the Among their findings is the needle
He added: “Bridport is a cracking pockets of Roman soldiers and citi- that matches the ring brooch which
area anyway, it’s very rich in history, zens alike.  initially belonged to the farmer.
but a find like this is unprecedented.  Experts date it back to the middle of
“Others were issued by emperors the tenth century. In future, the find
“I’ve never seen a hoard of this size who ruled during the first century AD. will be showcased in the permanent
before. We found one in Somerset last One I can see in the photograph was exhibition at the State Archaeological
year but there were just 180, and they struck for the ill-fated emperor Otho, Museum in the city of Schleswig.
Courtesy of https://archaeology-
newsnetwork.blogspot.com/2017/09/
rare-silver-treasures-from-viking-age.
html#YRMSbC5mCxc2Ojf8.99
Submitted by Len Myers.

20 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 12-19-17

Favorite Finds

Some of Lost Treasure Staff's
Favorites From Our 2017
Featured Favorite Finds

This was found by John Moody of A 1901 Indian Head penny found by Reader Jeff Filaseta found
Arizona Treasures Unlimited. reader Ronny Barber. this beauty.

Some Favorite Finds made by members of the A find made by treasure hunter
Lancaster Research and Recovery Club. Andy Sabisch.

Shown are some
favorite finds made
by reader Kelly Rea.

www.LostTreasure.com Newsletter 12-19-17 21

Calendar of Events
This section is provided by Lost Treasure magazine as a
free service for non-profit treasure clubs and organizations.

FEBRUARY including lunch. No individual pric- All participants will receive a vial
9th - 11th – Round Rock, Texas. ing. If you send payment before with a picker or two in it as well as a
The Quartzsite, Arizona, Gold Show March 1st the cost is only $99. The PayDirt bag that has their split of the
at the QIA Bldg., 235 N Ironwood, fun starts at 9 a.m. See website for gold recovered. People will be there
Quartzsite, Arizona, Friday – maps, forms and more information to help you find more gold, both
Saturday 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. and Sun. at www.tcas.us or http://www.tcas. hands on training and a “classroom”
9 a.m. – 3 p.m. $5 Admission good us/tcashunt.htm setting. Some subjects include: basic
for all three days. Vendors inside prospecting, geology, panning, GPS,
and out selling and demonstrat- 10th – 11th – Turlock, and detecting. There will also be
ing gold prospecting equipment, California. 52nd Annual Rock, daily fun activities that help benefit
nuggets, jewelry, coins and more. Mineral & Jewelry Show, a family the camps. Only paid participants
Speakers demonstrations, questions event, at the Stanislaus Fairgrounds, can be a part of outing activities, i.e.
and answers for metal detectors 900 N. Broadway from 10 a.m. classes, seminars, hands-on train-
and other prospecting equipment. to 5 p.m. daily. Rocks, Minerals, ing, etc. For more information, log
Door Prizes, including gold nuggets, Fossils, Jewelry, Beads, Fluorescents onto https://www.facebook.com/
metal detectors and more. For more and more! Learn to make beau- events/173558333231940/ or call
information, contact Richard Trusty tiful jewelry out of natural rocks (800) 551-9707.
at  QuartzsiteAZGoldShow@gmail. and gemstones from demonstra-
com or (651) 587-6136 or (928) tors. Children’s Activities, includ- JULY
927-5479. You can also log onto the ing making your own bracelet and 22nd – 28th – Vallonia, Indiana.
website at QuartzsiteAZGoldshow. carving soapstone. Will also have Southern Indiana 10th Annual
com a newly expanded HUGE fluores- Treasure Fest at the Starve Hollow
cent display room. There are over State Recreation Area, camping
24th – Galveston, Texas. The 40 dealers selling rocks, minerals, available, just south of Brownstown,
Houston ARC’s 36th Annual Open fossils, jewelry, beads & supplies, Indiana, off Hwy. 135. Non-Profit
Beach Hunt & Texas AMDC Hunt at and much, much more. For more Clubs and metal detecting related
East Beach. “All Tokens” hunt and information, contact Bud & Terry businesses. Numerous sponsors,
free Kids Hunt, too. These are sepa- McMillin at (209) 524-3494, e-mail  hundreds of prizes. At the 2017
rate hunt registrations. See http:// [email protected] event over 20 metal detectors were
www.tamdc.org and the TAMDC or log onto the website at www.tur- given away. 100% of entries go
Facebook page at https://www. lockgemshow.com back into the ground. Seven days of
facebook.com/TAMDC2012/ for Silver Hunts, Token Hunts, Beach
updates. For more information on JUNE Hunts, and Kids Hunts. Come
the HARC Open Beach Hunt e-mail 12th – 17th – Nebo, North and stay for the full seven-day
Byron Whitaker at byron_whitak- Carolina. Common Dig “Dirt Party” event. Deadline for entries is July
[email protected] hosted by the Gold Prospectors 1st. After the cutoff a $10 per day
Association of America (GPAA) late fee is added. For full flyer,
MARCH and the Lost Dutchman›s Mining visit Southern Indiana Treasure Fest
10th – Wabasso, Florida. Association (LDMA) at the LDMA on Facebook or contact Rick Trout,
Treasure Coast Archaeological Vein Mountain Camp, 3216 Vein (574) 848-9345 or e-mail treasurer-
Society’s 31st Annual Hunt. Only 5 Mountain Rd. Open to anyone that [email protected] 
minutes from the 1715 Spanish fleet wants to play in the dirt and find
wreck treasure beaches. Competition gold. Register by calling GPAA E-mail upcoming
hunt, silver and Reale hunts. Lots headquarters at (800) 551-9707 no events to
of prizes including metal detectors later than 06/07/18. All participants
(AT Pro’s, Ace 350/400), scoops, will be working for their gold split at managingeditor@
headphones and a lot more. The cost the end of the outing. All gold recov- losttreasure.com
is $125 for the whole day (all hunts) ered is split between participants.

22 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 12-19-17

www.LostTreasure.com Newsletter 12-19-17 23