LOST TREASURE - OCTOBER 2016 (2)

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Newsletter–October 18, 2016

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Maryland Free­State Treasure Club members finds 2016

Maryland Free­State Treasure Club

Back to Photos

Photos of Members' Finds 2016

Lost TreasureAlso see the Maryland Free­State Treasure Club facebook page.

Attach your digital photos here (opens email to Steve) to have them uploaded to this page.
Please provide names and approx. dates for each photo. The location is unnecessary.

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October 18 2016

FEATURE CLUB

Feature Club — page 4

ndsay 10­04­16

er band, 3 Wheats, 45 Eric Ritter 10­05­16
Draped bust large cent.
 & shell, partial U.S. John Vice 10­04­16

my dog tag.  2 wheaties and a handsome gold

ring.

John Vice 10­05­16
SIlver bracelet, pocket knife, an

FAVORITE FINDSold lock, two flat buttons, large
cent (1851) punched, part of a
buckle, a token celebrating ones
page 6 — aFuanvto.rite Finds

Cullough 09­24­16 Mike McCullough 10­01­16
n, musket ball, 1901
r head stamp, copper OTHER FEATURESShotgun shells, tombac button,
hoe buckle fragment. decorated metal, heart pendant,
1983 McDonald's token.

3 The Coined Phrase
John Curtis 09­26­16

8 Special Bonus Feature From13 Wheats, 1963 Washington
quarter, 1895 Republica Peruana

Lost Treasure Magazine(Peru) Dos Centavos and 1907
Brazilian 20 Reis same hole, 1941
Eric Ritter 10­03­16
13 THers' NewsJeff Nickel, two Buffs, 1904 V 1924 class ring.

Nickel, Button, Pendant, Buckle,

21 Tips From the ProsBullet, Clad.

22 Calendar of Events

2 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 10-18-16 1/22

eestateclub.com/MemberFinds2016.html

LostTreasure The Coined Phrase
By Carla Nielsen
CELEBRATING OUR 50th YEAR

PUBLISHER Lee Harris
[email protected]
VP/ ADVERTISING John Housley A
[email protected]
MANAGING EDITOR Carla Nielsen
[email protected]
WEBMASTER webmaster@
losttreasure.com
ART DIRECTOR/ Becki Harris
PRODUCTION [email protected]
CUSTOMER SERVICE Lawrence Harris Confederate
[email protected]

IN MEMORIAM
Coy Harris (1964-1996)
Kevin Harris (1965-2013)

Treasure
Mystery

PRINT MAGAZINE SUBSCRIPTION: One There are few more intriguing A construction crew had found it,
year (12 issues) $33.95, S & H included, two tales than those of buried treasure, but a foreman feared the discovery
years (24 issues) $59.95, S & H included: whether it’s long-lost pieces of eight would prevent completion of the job
Canada, add $15 per year (U.S. funds only). or artifacts from our past. and told his crew to pave over the
Allow 6 to 8 weeks for delivery of your first well.
issue. (Printed in the USA.) Who doesn’t love stories like that?
SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES: Toll- This story is about the fate of one The cannon, the man said, is still
free 1-866-469-6224 Please send address or two cannons carted away from down there.
change or correction (enclosing latest the Fayetteville Arsenal by General
address label) eight weeks in advance to Sherman just before he destroyed And so has begun another search
our subscription department: Lost Treasure, the factory that supplied weaponry to for a historic treasure. Nobody’ has
Box 469091, Escondido, CA 92046-9091. soldiers fighting on the Confederate been able to pinpoint its location
E-mail [email protected] side. and unearth it so far. And it’s unclear
It happened at about the same whether anyone will ever get that far.
Lost Treasure, Inc., 25100 N. Hwy. 59, Grove, OK time the Union general fulfilled his
74344. (918) 786-2182 • FAX (918) 786-2192. Direct other mission there, burning down But in a town like Fayetteville,
the Fayetteville Observer. where history buffs abound, even a
all advertising, manuscripts, and general information to: Lost According to legend, one of the rumor of artifacts this valuable will
cannons never made it out of town. quicken the pulse of every treasure
Treasure, P.O. Box 451589, Grove, OK 74345. All content in this It is said that Sherman’s soldiers seeker everywhere.
dumped it all down a well when they
publication is copyrighted. All rights are reserved on the entire discovered the caisson holding it was Courtesy of http://www.fayob-
broken. server.com
contents: nothing may be reprinted in whole or in part without the Cut to modern times when a dying
man went to a local lawyer to write [email protected]
expressed written permission of the publisher. his will and told a story about the
cannon.
© 2016 Lost Treasure, Inc.®

LostTreasure OnLine

http://www.lost treasure.com

www.LostTreasure.com Newsletter 10-18-16 3

Feature Club & Favorite Finds

The Maryland Free-State
Treasure Club

The Maryland Free-State Treasure ous metal detectors. Annual club dues are $25.
Club (MFSTC) held their annual The Maryland Free-State Treasure
Open Treasure Hunt Sunday, Oct. 9, Officers:
at the Sandy Point Park in Annapolis, Club in Baltimore, Maryland, was President and Contact - Gary
Maryland. established for metal detecting Pennington, (410) 440-2881,
enthusiasts. [email protected]
There were over $9000.00 in Vice President - Howard Shettle
coins and tokens for prizes buried in Adventures include field trips, Treasurer - Steve Cunningham
the sand for hunters to find. hunts, treasure, coins and relic hunt- Secretary - Dave Miller
ing. Newsletter - Dave Miller
Prizes included diamonds, gold
coins, silver and gear. All registra- This is a multigenerational club. For more information, log onto
tion money collected was spent on Guest, beginners, and experienced the club’s website at Http://www.
prizes. detectorists and families are wel- marylandfreestateclub.com
come.
The two grand prizes were a certi- You can also visit their Facebook
fied and graded round diamond and Meetings are held the third page at https://www.facebook.com/
a 1/10-oz gold coin (a value of over Thursday of the month (except marylandfreestatetreasureclub/?fref
$400). December) at 7 p.m. at the Victory =ts
Villa Community Center, Middle
Registrants received a free lunch River Recreation and Parks building,
coupon and raffle ticket for numer- 404 Compass Rd., Essex, Maryland.

4 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 10-18-16

Feature Club & Favorite Finds

www.LostTreasure.com Newsletter 10-18-16 5

Maryland Free­State Treasure Club

Back to Photos

Photos of Members' Finds 2016

Also see the Maryland Free­State Treasure Club facebook page.
Attach your digital photos here (opens email to Steve) to have them uploaded to this page.

Feature Club & Favorite Finds Cont'dPlease provide names and approx. dates for each photo. The location is unnecessary.
If the latest photos do not appear, right click and reload the page.

________________________________________________________________________________________

Tim Lindsay 10­04­16

Sterling Silver band, 3 Wheats, 45 Eric Ritter 10­05­16
Draped bust large cent.
cal bullet & shell, partial U.S. John Vice 10­04­16

Army dog tag.  2 wheaties and a handsome gold

ring.

John Vice 10­05­16
SIlver bracelet, pocket knife, an
old lock, two flat buttons, large
cent (1851) punched, part of a
buckle, a token celebrating ones

aunt.

Mike McCullough 09­24­16 Mike McCullough 10­01­16
Flat button, musket ball, 1901 Shotgun shells, tombac button,
Winchester head stamp, copper decorated metal, heart pendant,
ring and shoe buckle fragment.
1983 McDonald's token.

John Curtis 09­26­16 Eric Ritter 10­03­16
13 Wheats, 1963 Washington 1924 class ring.
quarter, 1895 Republica Peruana
(Peru) Dos Centavos and 1907 1/22
Brazilian 20 Reis same hole, 1941
Jeff Nickel, two Buffs, 1904 V
Nickel, Button, Pendant, Buckle,

Bullet, Clad.

6 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 10-18-16

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SGTteeaTxoMthaergseaTigraseataozsriunyreeoanTnatldehsie:s folGFlraoererwe!tting aSpWwPseIaEaeNgnpe!agtset3rae3kbess oins ufrsopmreLvoieswt Torfewashuarte
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The Fortress anchor was wedged get fouled, attach a clip of my Carter I was in a hurry so didn’t take

under an iron beam. It was easy lift bag to the anchor itself, then fill time at depth to carefully secure the

enough to get out. the bag with air from my octopus or line as I normally would. The line

I lifted the anchor’s 12 feet of spare regulator. was too long to be convenient, and

stainless steel chain up over the ship- Sometimes I use my primary reg- was very bulky when I rolled it up.

wreck and dumped it on the sand. ulator, but that is not a safe idea. Being hasty underwater is sure to

Coiling the 150 feet of double Divers that lift all the time have a create remorse.

braided line took more time. The special inflator hose attached to their As the line fell away from my

new line snaked over the shipwreck regulator with a nozzle that makes tangle I regretted not taking more

until it met a place where it joined inflation underwater easy. time below to knot it carefully in a

another line that had been cut. The anchor and chain were found bundle under the anchor.

The new anchor and chain cost 100 feet down in the Gulf Stream off I added air to my buoyancy com-

some hapless boater $350, the line Palm Beach, Florida. pensator, checked to be sure the line

$3.68 a foot. For salvage divers this All I took with me on the dive and chain would not foul my camera

was treasure trove. was my safety sausage. I didn’t want or regulator hoses, and started for the

The ocean floor is littered with to end the dive and go up with the surface.

anchors, but they are not easy to anchor, chain and line, yet the inflat- I had not been down long, there-

manage or get to the surface. able sausage didn’t have enough lift fore had no need of making a safety

In this situation I ordinarily coil power needed to take my treasure to stop or for decompression.

How Toand tie line, wrap chain so it will not the surface. SalvageThe danger of bringing something
From The Sea
By John Christopher Fine

The author’s piggy bank with the $5 dollar bill, washed and dried out on a line with
a clothes pin; it was found atop a sea urchin.

832 LLOOSSTT TTRREEAASSUURREENeAwusgluesttte2r 01106-18-16

up to the surface is an ascent that is Hard hat divers were protected by copper and brass from falling objects while they
faster than safety recommendations. worked underwater. This hard hat’s dent attests to an accident in the past. Scuba
divers do not wear hard hats, so must keep out from under objects being lifted
The risk of decompression acci- to avoid injury if they break free or fall back. The author found the false teeth
dent is compounded by a fast ascent. underwater.
I was careful, but unhappy when dan-
gling line from the anchor wrapped “Hard weights are $4 a pound, Tools and equipment were secured
around my fin, but I got it untangled. soft weights $5 a pound. Lead is to prevent loss.
expensive,” another diver said.
Cutting thick line underwater is A diver I taught an advanced dive
not always easy, not even with a “I found a whole weight belt full course to was enthused about catch-
good knife that has a serrated steel of soft weights last week,” Matthew ing lobsters. He bought a lobster bag
blade. said. for $40 and a lobster snare for $45
including tax.
I carry two knives underwater. “I emptied it and put the soft
Some divers also carry stainless steel weights into my buoyancy compen- He caught two lobsters and was
shears. sator jacket pockets. That anchor is a so excited that he’d have a feast and
great find.” surprise his mother that he inflated
Shears will cut line and mono- his sausage on the bottom, ready for
filament easier than a knife in most Matthew’s find of 18 pounds of his ascent and safety stop.
cases. The line I recovered was too soft lead dive weights cost some-
thick for shears and would have had body $90 plus the price of the belt Then he released his sausage that
to have been sawed through. I was itself, at least another $25. went up on a line attached to a reel.
glad I got it untangled easily. He made sure his lobster bag was
The ocean is unforgiving. In the clipped to his belt and up he went.
I carry two knives since it is far old days hard hat divers clipped
too easy to drop a knife working in everything to their weight belts. His $45, brand new lobster snare
the ocean. A dropped knife, if a diver
is entangled, can spell disaster.

On the surface I signaled Jason
Landau, captain of “Little Deeper,” a
dive charter vessel from Blue Heron
Bridge Scuba and Watersports.

He brought the dive boat close
then backed down to get me. The
mate and deck hand took my sau-
sage and tangle of rope from me at
the swim platform. I swam a short
distance away so he could take my
find aboard.

What was the value of my find?
A likely retail cost would be about
$740 for everything including tax.
What will I do with yet another
anchor, stainless steel chain and line?

Some of my diving buddies sell
their finds on the Internet. I’m not
a computer guru so I’ll likely add it
to the pile of 30 anchors already in
the garage and wait for an opportune
moment to trade it for something I
need. It took a lot of work to get it
up.

“I found a Go Pro camera last
week. It even had the film clip the
diver made. No identification on it
so I kept it. Works great,” a veteran
diver aboard “Little Deeper,” said.

“That’s me. I find weight belts
and anchors. You find cameras and
watches,” I retorted.

“You know what dive weights
cost these days?” Matthew, the mate
and divemaster put in.

www.wLowswtT.LreoasstTurreea.csoumre.NcoemwslAetutegrus1t02-1081-616 393

A fortress anchor and chain on its way to the surface. was not clipped on, ing pictures at the Blue Heron Bridge,
The inflated sausage did not have enough lift to bring however. In his excite- a long bridge that separates the City
the heavy chain, anchor and more than 100 feet of ment he forgot it on of Riviera Beach on the mainland
line up. It required inflating author’s buoyancy com- the bottom. We still from Singer Island.
pensator jacket to provide the additional lift. Photos by haven’t found it for
author John Christopher Fine. him and it’s been a An old bridge was replaced, but
week. the county wisely left its structure
1304 LOST TREASURE NAeuwgsulsettt2e0r 1160-18-16 close to shore intact so fishermen
I still tell the tale of could use it.
finding a lobster bag
with two legal size All along the underwater reaches
lobsters alive in it. I of this bridge area there are juvenile
also found a lobster creatures in the shelter of a lagoon
bag with the diver’s formed by the bridge.
name on it.
The county has placed concrete
That one had the structures underwater off the beach as
mesh chewed to bits. an attraction for marine life as well.
The diver lost it get-
ting back on the dive There, right in front of me, was
ladder with her catch a $5 bill. A sea urchin had picked it
of three lobsters. up somehow and was using it as an
umbrella of sorts for protection.
Sometime later
a shark tore the bag Sea urchins abound in the area and
apart on the bottom, often gather shells, rocks and debris
eating her catch. on top of their thorny shells as cam-
ouflage and protection from fish that
We had a good would otherwise enjoy a tasty meal
laugh when I returned once they crack open its shell.
what was left of her
lobster bag, mesh I picked up speed, as did my div-
shredded, and its plas- ing companion who likewise saw the
tic mechanism intact. booty.

Of course there are I got there first and we had a lot
coin and gold jewelry of fun disputing the claim. The $5
finds, but those are the has not been spent yet. It resides in
unusual lucky under- a piggy bank where found coins are
water finds. placed to be used for a special treat
one day.
I once found a brand
new Gerber tool that I As you can tell this is not an article
still use after I rinsed of grandiose treasure discoveries. It is
it in fresh water and about ordinary salvage of cool stuff
sprayed it with WD 40. underwater.

I once taught a man Two manufacturers in the U.S.
to dive that owned produce excellent small, serviceable
a house right on the and easily carried lift bags.
ocean that he paid $9
million for. They also produce commercial lift
bags, should you ever come across
He went diving a sunken 300-horsepower outboard
right in front of his still attached to its fiberglass run-
house one afternoon, about. They are sturdy and very well
saw a $20 bill floating made.
in the ocean then took a
look around and found I use small lift bags for my safety
a wallet that contained stop marker. They can lift a medium
$300 in cash. anchor and chain or diver weight belt
to a maximum of about 30 pounds.
If he wasn't able
to return it then he is I lost the one I liked best that had
wealthier than he was more lift and was still small enough
before I taught him to to fit into my buoyancy compensator
dive and has a great jacket pocket.
story to tell his friends.
That day I had two divers with
Once we were tak- me. An eddy in the Gulf Stream was
taking us south instead of the usual
northward flow.

Captain Kevin Metz of “Explorer,”

out of Boynton Beach, Florida, A close up view of the author’s finds - a like-new Fortress anchor, stainless steel
dropped us on an 85-foot deep reef chain, and over 100 feet of double braided line.
so they could catch lobsters. There
were plenty of lobsters as well as a two subsequent dives. It was found hold onto a lift bag going up. It will
nice anchor and chain. by a dive student a week later and go up too fast.
returned to the man that lost it.
I couldn’t resist the anchor, so I A rapid ascent risks decompres-
clipped it to my lift bag, removed the He’d paid $550 for the camera and sion accident and perhaps, if a diver
cord from it that I used on my safety wand and offered a $100 reward. The is pulled up too quickly without
stop, inflated the bag and sent the diver refused it, although a deckhand exhaling, an air embolism.
anchor up. aboard grabbed the $100 bill saying
she’d use it for her charity. Do not get under something being
I didn’t bother to coil and knot lifted. It can fall back down or the
the anchor’s line. I saw it go straight Here are some important precau- line can snap.
up and assumed Kevin would pull it tions to use when using lift bags or
aboard because I wanted to stay with lifting something up from depth. Next time you go the History
my divers. of Diving Museum in Islamorada,
Check your air supply. You don’t Florida, take a close look at their col-
It was quick. Being quick was the want to exhaust a breathing mixture lection of hard hats.
mistake. The line weighed down the while inflating a lift bag.
anchor and, while Kevin saw the lift Many are dented. That means stuff
bag on the surface, by the time he got Be certain that you have enough fell on the diver’s head. Most Scuba
to it had gone under and was lost. air in reserve for a safety stop, as well divers do not have wear a hard hat
as for any contingency surfacing and to protect them underwater. Stay out
I dove that site a couple of times then waiting to be picked up on the from under objects being lifted.
but could not find my favorite safety surface.
stop sausage that served as a fair lift Use caution and be a safe diver
bag as well. Divers that do salvage regularly first. No find is worth injury or acci-
use a separate air tank to inflate lift dent.
Mostly it is finder’s keepers on the bags, which is safe although not prac-
ocean floor. Divers that go out with tical for casual salvage. Underwater salvage is fun and can
us have lost expensive cameras. be profitable, but safety must be the
Salvage divers also use Carter and first priority.
One had just purchased a Go Pro Subsalve USA lift bags that have over
camera with a wand. “I saw it drop. I pressure relief valves. Never let the rush of excitement
couldn’t get it. I didn’t have enough detract from caution and the rules of
air. It fell right to the sand,” he related Filled with compressed air at safe diving taught in training courses.
when he got back aboard. depth, the air expands as the lift bag
goes up. Now then, does anybody need an
The dive boat captain was not anchor?
about to wait around. He marked the Expanding air can cause an inex-
spot on the GPS then said he’d tell pensive lift bag to rupture. Over pres- Sources:
divers to keep an eye out for it. sure relief valves obviate that danger. The author is a Master Scuba
Instructor and Instructor Trainer. The
I looked for the man’s camera on Do not get so excited by a find that article is based on his own diving
you become entangled. Be certain experience and conversations with
The Subsalve USA Quadbag and the that when the lift bag is sent to the divers that have been involved with
Carter lift bag. The Carter bag has surface you and your diving buddy marine salvage.
a narrow neck to prevent air from are completely free and clear. Do not
spilling out when the bag reaches the
surface. The Carter over pressure relief
valve is at the top.

www.LwoswtTwr.eLaosutTrere.caosmureN.ceowmsleAttuegr u1s0t-1280-1166 1315

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THers' News

Visitor Finds 2.03-Carat Diamond at Crater of Diamonds State Park.

Visitor Finds 2.03-Carat large, beautiful diamonds while sur- "We were so excited with our find
Diamond at Crater of face searching. This is an example that we actually walked around the
Diamonds State Park of a diamond that all park visitors park for another seven hours with the
It took less than an hour for Dan dream of taking home.” diamond in my dad’s pocket, trying
Frederick, of Renton, Washington, to find another one. 
and his daughter, Lauren, to spot Larger diamonds are occasion-
a 2.03-carat white diamond on ally found on top of the search area "It really was the cherry on top
the side of a plowed furrow at by park visitors. of a fun and special trip with my
Arkansas’s Crater of Diamonds State dad. Finding the diamond will be
Park. Diamonds are a bit heavy for one of my favorite memories, espe-
The Fredericks arrived at their size, and when rain washes dirt cially since my dad and I found it
Arkansas’s diamond site at 8 a.m. away, they are sometimes exposed to together.”
on Monday, October 3, and by 9 the surface.
a.m. they were holding “The Lucky Coors noted, “The Lucky
Diamond.” When the sun comes out, they Diamond is pearly white in color. It
The first time was the charm for sparkle and are easier to spot. appears to be a macle gem, a distinct
the Fredericks. They’d never been triangular shape that results when
to Crater of Diamonds State Park Dan and Lauren Frederick say two diamond crystals share part of
before. they plan to keep their diamond. the same structure during formation
In fact, they traveled all the way However, they haven’t said what deep within the earth.”
from the West Coast based on what they will do with it.
they found when they searched the For more information, contact the
Internet for “places to find gems.” “My dad and I have always loved Crater of Diamonds State Park, 209
They found their gem near the to hunt for gems; we’ve dug for State Park Rd., Murfreesboro, AR
Star of Arkansas diamond marker on sapphires and garnets and always 71958, www.craterofdiamondsstate-
the north end of the park’s 37.5-acre search for agates when we’re on the park.com
diamond search area. Washington coast.  Naturally, we had
Dan Frederick noted that he spot- always wanted to go to Arkansas to ‘Jaw-dropping’
ted the diamond’s metallic shine on dig for diamonds,” Lauren said. Bronze Age Finds
top of the ground about three feet A 3,000-year-old complete
away from where he was standing. “As much as we have talked about pressed flower is among the “abso-
Park Interpreter Betty Coors the trip and planned it out, I think lutely jaw-dropping” late Bronze
noted, “Dan Frederick has proven, we’re still kind of in shock that we Age finds unearthed in Lancashire.
once again, that it is possible to find found something as big and beautiful The thistle flower appears to have
as our ‘Lucky Diamond.’  been deliberately placed inside the
hollow end of an axe handle and bur-
"When we first found the dia- ied with other weapons, jewelry and
mond we kept looking up pictures on
the Internet to make sure it was real
and kept guessing what the weight
would be (my guess was closest!). 

www.LostTreasure.com Newsletter 10-18-16 13

THers' News continued...

These socketed axes were also discovered. Photograph: Dalya Alberge. Photos courtesy of https://www.theguardian.com/sci-
ence/2016/sep/30/pristine-pressed-flower-among-jaw-dropping-bronze-age-finds

14 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 10-18-16

THers' News continued...
placed with the metal. It could have chisel was found by a metal detec-
The preserved thistle flower is been food, clothing… all sorts of torist.
believed to be about 3,000 years old. things made of wood that wouldn’t
have survived.” Brendon Wilkins, an archaeolo-
Photograph: Dalya Alberge. gist and the project director, said
Though the flower is a unique that, while excavating that site in
find, comparable discoveries have July, his team had been alerted to
been made in Ireland and Scotland. the discovery of the new hoard by
another metal detectorist about seven
Roberts said. “So what we’re talk- miles (11km) away.
ing about is certainly a hoard that
reflects the interconnections both “What really struck us was the
across the Irish Sea and well into serendipity,” he said.
Scotland.”
“Right at the same time, an abso-
Earlier this year, the Guardian lutely jaw-dropping hoard came to
revealed that a significant early light and allowed a team that was
Bronze Age burial site had been dis- already in the field [to go there].
covered near Morecambe Bay.
“These sites are starting to come
Archaeologists were alerted to together, filling a big black hole in
its existence after a well-preserved our knowledge.”

ornaments, many in virtually pristine
condition.

Other axe handles in the hoard
had been filled with hazelnuts as part
of a ritual offering.

Dr. Ben Roberts, a lecturer at
Durham University and the British
Museum’s former curator of
European bronze age collections,
described the pressed flower as
unique for a votive offering of its
time.

Other discoveries include spear-
heads with blades still sharp, axes,
bracelets, arm rings, a chisel and a
pair of ornaments thought to have
been part of a horse harness.

The hoard is not linked to a burial
site. Instead, it is part of a ritual offer-
ing in which artifacts were placed in
wet and waterlogged sites by people
within a farming community.

Flowers have been found in ear-
lier graves, but, by the time this
collection was buried, people were
being cremated and their ashes scat-
tered – a process that would have
destroyed such offerings.

Such hoards generally contain one
or two different types of objects, but
this one has several.

Roberts said: “We always think
that votive offerings are all about
metal. What this highlights is that
there would have been other things

www.LostTreasure.com Newsletter 10-18-16 15

THers' News continued...
Wilkins described the thistle with the team livestreaming their
flower as a “tremendous” find and layer-by-layer investigation on their  A 3D scan of the frieze decorating a
the variety of other objects as sig- Facebook page. tomb-containing building at Holmul,
nificant. showing a king wearing an avian sun
Courtesy of https://www.the- god headdress emerging from a sacred
“The items found in the hoard guardian.com/science/2016/sep/30/
must now be assessed and analyzed pristine-pressed-flower-among-jaw- mountain spirit head amid feath-
in a lab, before a coroner decides dropping-bronze-age-finds ered serpents. Photograph: Picasa/A
whether they can be officially desig- Tokvinine, U Alabama. Photos cour-
nated as treasure. Submitted by Len Myers. tesy of https://www.theguardian.com/
science/2016/oct/14/mayan-tombs-
"Then they’re offered up to local Secret Mayan Tombs
or national museums,” he added. Lend Rare Insight snake-kings-holmul-guatemala
Into ‘Snake Kings’
The Morecambe Bay excavation Archaeologists in Guatemala have rious collapse a few centuries later.
was partly financed through a crowd- unearthed two Maya tombs that Inside one was a puzzling artifact
funding initiative, DigVentures, a “miraculously escaped” looters’ tun-
social enterprise founded by three nels underneath two Maya pyra- of a Maya dynasty that archaeolo-
archaeologists – including Wilkins mids, where researchers hope that gists call the snake kings, after the
– to address severe cuts to research jade-inlaid teeth, an inscribed human snakehead emblem of their house – a
archaeology funding. tibia, and a puzzling sun-god pen- family that ruled 100 miles to the
dant could give insight into the rule north, far from the tombs found in
A team of archaeologists from of ancient “snake kings.” Holmul.
DigVentures, Durham University The tombs were found at the
and the Portable Antiquities ancient ruins of Holmul, 300 miles One tomb is a vaulted chamber,
Scheme described the votive hoard north of Guatemala City, and date built into a pyramid that was con-
as “spectacular and significant.” back to about 650-700 AD, the era of structed to surround an older, fifth-
Maya dominance before their myste- century building.
Other finds include a rare, intact
early Bronze Age funerary urn. This Inside was the skeleton of a mid-
object will undergo further research, dle-aged person whose teeth had
jade inlays, a custom of Maya roy-
STANDARD DIGGING TOOL alty, and an inscribed human tibia,
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THers' News continued...
epigrapher with scanning equipment Estrada-Belli said. jewel tells us that the dynasty’s
to read the badly eroded text. The snake kings stretched their relationships were quite pervasive,
and even a secondary kingdom like
In Tikal, another site in Guatemala, influence far to the south of that city, Holmul could have a direct relation-
researchers have previously found and warred with Tikal for power over ship with the overlord.”
a similar carved bone that bore smaller kingdoms such as Holmul,
the name and image of a captured Naranjo and Xunantunich. Recent discoveries have suggest-
warrior, said Rosemary Joyce, an ed internal conflicts among the snake
anthropologist at UC Berkeley who “It’s all being debated, but this
was not involved in the excavation.
SECURITY
She cautioned that the bones WARNING DECALS
would need examination by a physi-
cal anthropologist before their con- Protect Yourself and
firmation as human: “When you take Your Belongings!
a human femur and cut the ends off,
deer bone can look like that.” Protect Your Detectors
and Your Property!
A carved frieze near the tomb
depicts five rulers, but the person in • Heavy duty vinyl self-adhesive decal’s warn that your
the tomb is probably not one of them, property is protected by ELECTRONIC AUTOMATIC
Estrada-Belli said, because ceramics ALARM SYSTEM.
found in the tomb suggest the person • Frighten burglars away.
lived long after those kings. • Apply easily to glass, metal, plastic or wood.
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The second tomb was found in a
separate pyramid, and its two cham- or call 800-423-0029 Ext 2
bers seem to have been palace rooms
converted into a tomb, the research-
ers said.

They found remains of a middle-
aged person, a large masonry bench,
and offerings of ceramic, bone and
jade, including a necklace, which
Estrada-Belli called “the first major
find of this kind.”

The team’s epigrapher, Alexandre
Tokovinine, said that this is the first
finding of a jade artifact with the
name of a snake king.

The inscription on the necklace,
which holds a carved cormorant’s
head that morphs into the image
of a sun god, is unusual because it
belongs to a king from an entirely
different city: “Yuknoom Ti’ Chan,
Holy king of Kaanul.”

The king was a member of the
snake dynasty, 100 miles from their
ancient capital of Dzibanche, which
stands in modern Mexico.

“It looks a lot like Game of
Thrones or medieval Europe,”

www.LostTreasure.com Newsletter 10-18-16 17

THers' News continued...
kings, including something resem- and very terse statements. They rewrote history.”
Archaeologists expect more dis-
bling a civil war. might tell us about a war, they might
coveries waiting to be found in
Tikal eventually managed to over- tell us about a marriage of members Central America, in large part due to
new technology.
throw the snake kings, though only of separate kingdoms.”
“We have the tip of the iceberg,”
after it probably endured a puppet Joyce said that the findings do Estrada-Belli said, adding that scan-
ning technology “is going to reveal
ruler of the snake kings, Estrada- not change the overall story of what many ancient cities which we have
no information for, buried in the
Belli said. historians know about Mayan poli- jungle.

“It’s just an ebb and flow of power tics and wars, but “it definitely does “We’re going to have to rewrite
all the books of Maya history and
between these two great kingdoms.” improve the fine-grained under- the complexity of Maya civilization,
culture. Right now we have 1%, in
The jewel, he added, suggests that standing about how politics worked spite of 100 years’ research.”

the snake kings “kind of microman- at a local level.” At a nearby site further to the
north, the team uncovered ruins of
aged” each area. She said that this kind of evidence palaces and tombs that had been
robbed by looters.
“It fleshes out the structure of would help archaeologists fill in the
One monument left untouched,
Maya kingdoms or complex societ- gaps, and move the field to recon- however, had still the faint remains
of what Maya epigraphers’ call an
ies, and their hegemony, if you don’t sider how ancient rulers, whether

want to use the word empire.” Egyptian, Mayan or modern, often

He admitted that controversy tried to erase their rivals from his-

essful rkTeiHmnegardisnosmGuasi.rdoeunBdW t1h_e2pngaturceoloofr.Mqxadya 2/7t/o2r“y0W.12e k1n1o:w17wAhMat Phaagpepe1ned among

“We had no idea about this five the Aztec because of the tradition-

years ago,” he said. al histories they told the Spanish,

“A lot of it is inferred from read- where they gathered all the history

ing epigraphic texts, very limited books together, destroyed them and

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18 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 10-18-16

THers' News continued...
“emblem” glyph, a sign that identi-
fies a kingdom’s dynasty. It is believed the ship left riches from over 50 others at the bottom of the
ocean. (AP: Steven Senne)
“This was one of many lost cities,
a city that was known from ancient Click the blue ad above & order your copy of the
texts but that we could not associ-
ate with any known archaeological Treasure Hunter’s Logbook
site,” Tokovinine said in a statement,
using a controversial phrase among or call 800-423-0029 ext. 2
anthropologists.
www.LostTreasure.com Newsletter 10-18-16 19
Boston University and Guatemalan
authorities employ four park rangers
to guard Holmul from looters.

“As excited as we are about these
discoveries, so are the looters,”
Estrada-Belli said.

“But some of the best things are
ahead of us.”

Courtesy of https://www.the-
guardian.com/science/2016/oct/14/
mayan-tombs-snake-kings-holmul-
guatemala

Submitted by Len Myers.

Explorer Claims To Have
Located Famous
Pirate Ship’s Booty
The undersea explorer who dis-
covered the Whydah Gally, the
first authenticated pirate ship-
wreck in North America, believes
he has found where the ship’s leg-
endary treasure lies after more
than 30 years of poking around
the murky waters off Cape Cod.
Key points:
Barry Clifford convinced newly
discovered large metallic mass is
400,000 coins, other riches
Maritime archaeologists, histo-
rians say they are intrigued, but
remain sceptical
Former slave ship commanded by
English pirate Black Sam went down
in 1717
Barry Clifford said his expedi-
tion recently located a large metallic
mass he was convinced represented
most, if not all, of the 400,000 coins
and other riches believed to be con-
tained on the ship.
“We think we might be at the end
of the rainbow,” Mr. Clifford said in
the recently opened Whydah Pirate
Museum on Cape Cod, where many

THers' News continued...

It is believed the ship left riches from
over 50 others at the bottom of the
ocean. (AP: Steven Senne)

of the expedition’s finds are now Mr. Clifford dismissed Mr. A new find at the wreck that made
showcased. Johnston and others as longtime him famous would be a coup for Mr.
opponents who have refused to treat Clifford, who has been dealt major
Maritime archaeologists and his- his team’s work seriously. setbacks on other recent expeditions.
torians say they are intrigued, but
remain sceptical, mostly because he “Why would they be bragging to In 2014, he claimed to have
has been disproved on other finds. the judge about how much treasure found the wreck of the Santa Maria,
they stole? They were hanged,” he Christopher Columbus’ flagship
“Barry Clifford’s many claims can said, referring to the fate that befell from his first voyage to the Americas
be very exciting, if they can be veri- the surviving pirates of the Whydah. in 1492, off the coast of Haiti, only
fied with photographs or scientific “It isn’t going to get done in my to have researchers from UNESCO
proof,” said Paul Johnston, the cura- lifetime.” conclude it was more likely a ship
tor at the Smithsonian’s National from a later era because of the pres-
Museum of American History in The 71-year-old explorer hopes ence of bronze and copper fasteners.
Washington DC. “Until then, it’s just to start investigating the suspected
talk.” riches this month, but stressed the Last year, Mr. Clifford claimed to
recovery process would take time. have located the infamous Scottish
The former slave ship, commanded pirate Captain William Kidd’s
by the English pirate Samuel ‘Black Once the mass is located and Adventure Galley off the coast of
Sam’ Bellamy, went down in stormy raised, his team will need to gently Madagascar.
seas off Wellfleet, Massachusetts, in break it down using electrolysis and
1717, killing all but a handful of the small hand tools. UNESCO again threw cold water
nearly 150-person crew. on the pronouncement, concluding
“For me, it’d be great to get it an over 100-pound silver ingot Mr.
It is believed the heavily-laden all finished, but it isn’t going to get Clifford produced as proof of his
ship sunk quickly, leaving the ill- done in my lifetime,” Mr. Clifford find was actually 95 per cent lead.
gotten riches from over 50 ships at said. “Archaeology doesn’t happen
the bottom of the ocean. quickly, if you’re doing it correctly.” Ulrike Guerin, an underwater heri-
tage specialist at UNESCO, declined
But Victor Mastone, chief archae- Since his 1984 discovery, Mr. to comment on Mr. Clifford’s lat-
ologist for the Massachusetts Board Clifford and his team have returned est claim, but said the Haiti and
of Underwater Archaeological nearly every year to the wreck, over Madagascar experiences highlighted
Resources, which oversees ship- which he has special rights. how the explorer’s work lacked the
wrecks and other undersea finds, “necessary scientific approach.”
suggests the pirates could have sim- They have already reclaimed
ply been lying. some 200,000 artifacts, including Courtesy of http://www.abc.
thousands of silver Spanish coins, net.au/news/2016-10-08/explor-
“Did they brag more than they hundreds of pieces and fragments of er-claims-to-have-located-pirate-
should have? Who knows?” he said. rare African gold jewelry, dozens of ship’s-treasure/7914854
“We know what the pirates said they cannons, various colonial-era objects
had.” and other prizes. Submitted by Len Myers.

20 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 10-18-16

Tip From the Pros

Phoenix
By Jay Pastor

Once productive for investigated these places. Surprisingly, the grounds
coinshooters, old swim- They then managed to peripheral to the water
ming holes have pretty- haven’t changed much.
much disappeared - except convince the local authori- That means it’s still
for a select few that have ties not only to assume possible for a detectorist
responsibility for their to find older coins in the
risen from the ashes. upkeep, but to upgrade
And that is thanks to the area, and not always bur-
efforts of those who heard them every few decades to ied very deep.
oral histories and personal modern status (e.g.: aerat-
recollections about them ing spray fountains, water If you manage to locate a
from previous generations. Phoenix like this, check
filters, row boats and with the authorities first,
Those who had heard pedal boats, concessions, follow all the rules, then
such stories, when they walking trails, part-time go to work and have a
were children, sometimes lifeguards, lockers, and
great time.
plantings, etc.).

www.LostTreasure.com Newsletter 10-18-16 21

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

OCTOBER Mobile County, 1 mile south of I-10 hunting and new equipment view-
22nd – Irving, Texas. The Lone Exit 4. Two big events begin with ing, special speakers, a banquet, and
Star Treasure Hunters Club’s 42nd a Poker Hunt (highest hand wins a seminars daily for the entire fam-
Annual Open Hunt at the Mountain gold coin) followed by the Main ily! This three-day event with both
Creek Preserve, corner of Nursery Hunt (tokens redeemed for prizes). inside and outside booths will be
and Hunter Ferrell Road in Irving. Prizes will include metal detectors, the “Largest Show of Its Kind In the
Last year 14 metal detectors, 25 gold accessories, silver and gold coins, Four Corners.” General admission
coins and much more was awarded. Lortone Tumblers and more. For is $5 each day. Vendor, manufac-
Contact Robert Jordan at bobby. more information, contact Stanley turer, distributor and dealer booth
[email protected] or call (972) 839- Norris, Sahrara President, at (251) space will be available. Also hap-
6647 for more information or go to 716-3282, e-mail [email protected] pening this same weekend will
www.lonestartreasure.com or log onto http://www.sahrara.com/ be the Ultimate Outdoor & Gun
Show in another building. Historical
NOVEMBER MAY 2017 Attractions nearby include the ever
12th – Grand Bay, Alabama. 5th – 7th – Cortez, Colorado. popular Mesa Verde, Durango, &
The Sahrara Shoot-Out 2016, WWATS’ (World Wide Association Telluride, Colorado, including the
sponsored by the South Alabama of Treasure Seekers, Inc.) first Durango Silverton Train Ride! For
Historical Research and Recovery Ultimate Treasure and Gold Show more information, log onto www.
Association (Sahrara). This event at the Montezuma Fairgrounds, wwats.org or contact Keith Wills,
will be held rain or shine at the Grand 30100 US Hwy. 160. This will be V.P. WWATS, via e-mail at kwills@
Bay Middle School in southwest a fun-filled weekend of treasure etex.net

E-mail upcoming events to
[email protected]

Happy Halloween!

22 LOST TREASURE Newsletter 10-18-16