12/20/24 Report - What St. Nicholas Looked Like (Maybe). Pinecone Dwarf Light String. Metal Mesh Change Pursel.

 

Written by the Treasureguide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.

Vintage Metal Mesh Change Purse.

A day or two ago I posted a link to an article about a solidified pile of two almost-complete chainmail suits.  I wondered how a detector would respond to chainmail, but I never found any to test.  I did however have something that I thought might be somewhat similar - a metal mesh change purse (shown above).

I decided to see how the metal detector responded to the purse.  I was surprised.  The Equinox gave me a 13 - 15 conductivity reading all over the purse.  That, of course, is very much like the reading you would get for a nickel.  I moved the coil around, and to my surprise, the readout remained very consistent. The readout showed no evidence of iron anywhere.  I should get the purse XFR tested.  My research shows that some are made of silver.  This one looks silver, but I don't know how much, if any of it, really is.

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I was getting my Christmas decorations out and in an old box found a string of Christmas lights with pinecone dwarfs holding little candle lights (shown below).  I just put them out on the mantel.

String of Pinecone Dwarf Christmas Lights on the Mantel

I really like the dwarfs and remember them from my childhood probably sometime in the 1950s.  It was a real treasure find for me.  Unfortunately, a couple of the dwarfs are missing.  I did a little research and found an entire string with an asking price of $170.00 on eBay.  

They were made in Italy.  Othe similar ones were made in other countries. 

Closeup of One of the Dwarfs from the Christmas Light String.

Two of the original dwarfs are missing and I hope to find identical replacements for the two missing ones.

Different people like different things.  Some people like to find old coins, while other people like valuable or fancy jewelry, and others like old rusty historic artifacts.  

Over the years my preferences have changed.  At first, I just wanted to see how much money I could find.  Then after I learned, I focused on gold jewelry.  And then I got into hunting shipwreck coins and artifacts.  Now I like some strange things, some of which have little value or no value, but I find interesting or just like for some reason, such as the pinecone dwarfs.  There are various reasons I like them.  There is the personal nostalgia.  There is the Christmas and Disney connection.  There are a lot of people that collect vintage Christmas items and Disney items.  And, to me, they just seem nice somehow.  I can't explain all of that.  But as they say, one man's trash is another man's treasure.  

You might like things more when you learn more about them.  Manny of my bottle and other finds aren't worth much, but I enjoy learning from them, and what I learn makes them more interesting to me.  Some finds might not appear interesting at all until you do the research and learn more about them.  There are even times when valuable items are thrown away because the value wasn't recognized, then when you learn more you might regret throwing it away.

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Reconstructed Image of the Real Saint Nicholas.

Discovering the true face of St. Nicholas: Brazilian designer reconstructs Santa’s face The reconstruction process relied on facial approximation techniques that use skeletal remains to infer physical features. This method, widely employed in forensic science, bridges the gap between archaeology and modern visualization.

(ZENIT News / Rome, 12.19.2024).- For centuries, Saint Nicholas of Myra, a fourth-century bishop from Asia Minor, has been cloaked in myth and legend. Widely recognized as the inspiration behind Santa Claus, his historical reality has often been overshadowed by his modern counterpart’s cheerful, red-suited image. But now, thanks to groundbreaking work by Brazilian designer Cícero Moraes and his team, the man behind the legend has been given a face—literally...

Here is the link for more about that.

Discovering the true face of St. Nicholas: Brazilian designer reconstructs Santa's face - ZENIT - English

Any similarity between the St. Nicholas image as reconstructed and the dwarf image is purely coincidental - or is it?

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Source: SurfGuru.com.

Not much to see here.  The tides have decreased as has the surf.

Good hunting,

Treasureguide@comcast.net

12/19/24 Report - Mystery Object Identified. Beach Closing. Silver Amulet Found. Chainmail Find.

 

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.

In my 12/18 post I showed a mystery object that was found by John H.  DJ did some research and found the above item from eBay.  It is described as being the back plate of a Taylor Baroguide Barometer, which is just like the one on the mystery object, which is now solved.

What John found is the back and some of the workings.  The face and dials (shown below) are missing.

Baroguide Barometer Face.

The barometer is probably 20th century.  Below is a link for the details of the Taylor Company.

D120.pdf

Thanks to DJ for identifying the mystery object and to John for sharing the find.

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Blind Creek will be closed January 6 to July 2025 for construction of a new parking lot and restroom facilities.  Beach access will be on a temporary beach access north of the current access and parking will be at the Little Mud Creek parking lot.

As you might know, Blind Creek is a very popular clothing optional beach just north of the FPL property.  If you are offended by nudity (or maybe just some nudity) this isn't the beach for you.

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A 1,800-year-old silver amulet discovered next to a skeleton in a cemetery in Germany is the oldest evidence of Christianity north of the Alps, according to a new study.

Researchers made the discovery by digitally unrolling a tiny scroll inside the amulet, which revealed an unusual Latin inscription. The finding may upend historians' understanding of how Christianity was practiced in the early Roman Empire.

Measuring just 1.4 inches (3.5 centimeters) long, the amulet contains a wafer-thin sheet of silver foil that's rolled up tightly. Archaeologists discovered it in the grave of a man who died between A.D. 230 and 270 and was buried in a cemetery on the outskirts of Frankfurt. The man likely wore the amulet on a cord around his neck, as it was found just below his chin...

Here is the link for more about that.

1,800-year-old silver amulet could rewrite history of Christianity in the early Roman Empire | Live Science

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In 2012, however, archaeologists unearthed a 30.86-pound (14-kilogram) hoard of chainmail in an ancient civilian settlement outside of a Roman legionary fortress in Bonn, Germany.

The thousands of interconnected rings in chainmail made the garment difficult to melt down, so it was instead reused for repairs, similar to textile patches. In fact, the results of the recent study suggest that the 2012 artifact—a solidified pile of two almost-complete chainmail garments as well as sections of two others—was essentially a scrap pile...

Here is that link.

How the Roman Army Repaired Its Armor Far From Home

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Source: SurfGuru.com.

We have some west winds today and the tides are lower.  That opens up some possibilities.  You might be able to get out a little farther on the beach today.

Good hunting,

Treasureguide@comcast.net

12/18/24 Report - 1715 Fleet Gold Coin Find Records. Mystery Object. Recent Reader Find Authenticated.

 

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.

Broken Eight-Reale Found by Mark G. Authenticated by West Bay.

I posted a broken reale found by Mark G. about a week ago.  He got it authenticated by West Bay Trading Company.  The certification identifies it as a broken 1600s eight-reale.  You might recall it was found in fill material.  

Congratulations Mark!

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Here is a new mystery find by John H.

Mystery Object Found by John H.

Inside the center circle it reads as follows.

DO NOT     MOVE SCREW

ROTATE PLATE

TO ALTITUDE OF

YOUR LOCALITY.

Around the circle are numbers starting around 10 o'clock with500 and increasing to around 3 o'clock with 3000.  Gradations in between the numbers.

John said, "I found this at Bob Graham Beach, just south of Jensen Beach, under a very deep cut. It's not newsworthy but I thought it was interesting. It is 4 inches in diameter and 1.25 thick. My guess is that it is a tool of our sworn enemy "surveyor, beach replenisher" what do you think?"

What do you think it is?  Let us know.

If you are a surveyor or know about that type of thing, maybe this object is familiar to you.  Or maybe not.  

Thanks.

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The 1715 Fleet Society put out a preview of a document on the 2015 Tricentennial gold coin finds.

They give the number of 1715 gold coin finds up to 2015 for seasons in which over 100 gold coins were found.

1,782 1715 Fleet gold coins were found in 1965.  That is the biggest number of any salvage year.  The second largest number of gold coins was found in 1964.  The third biggest year was 1988 when 921 were found.  Fourth was 2015, with 447.  Fifth was 1987 with 238.  Sixth was 1966 with 181. Then the last three years of over one hundred gold coins was 1967 (165), 1989 (151), and 1969 (149). 

 Interesting.  

Douglass Beach provided the most gold coins salvaged over the years with Corrigan's coming in second. 

Here is the link.

PREVIEW-Gold-Coins-of-the-Tricentennial-Discovery.pdf

Thanks to DJ for providing that link.

---

Source: Surfguru.com.

The high tides are still fairly high, but that is about it.

Good hunting,

TreasureGuide@comcast.net

12/17/24 Report - The Luna Papers. Good History and Research. Reader Report. Keeping Track of Your Frequent Hunting Spots.

 

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.

Below is the link for Volume I of The Luna Papers as published in the Florida Historical Quarterly.

The Luna papers : documents relating to the expedition of don Tristán de Luna y Arellano for the conquest of La Florida in 1559-1561 : Priestley, Herbert Ingram, 1875-1944, editor, translator : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

And below is a link to Volume II.

The Luna Papers - Google Books

There is a lot of good historical research there.

The reference to the Florida Historical quarterly was found in the bibliography to the paper on Spanish shipbuilding in the New World, which I posted yesterday.

If you look through that bibliography you'll probably find more good things to read.

===

Scott B.  said, 

I drove down from Fernandina today (Monday) to do a little detecting. I first tried at Golden Sands, then Ambersands. Nothing at either location other than can slaw. If only aluminum pieces were reales! Seaweed was also starting to wash up, not a good sign! Sorry I didn’t get any pictures.
I did chat with four other detecting hopefuls, but other than aluminum and a few fishing lures in seaweed, nobody I saw was doing any good on this part of the T.C...

Thanks for the report Scott.

----

In some of the beach photos that I posted the past few days there were some showing a lot of seaweed.  That is a sign of a building rather than eroding beach.  It shows that lighter materials are being washed in and left deposited on the beach, so it is usually a good indication of what the sand is doing.  For example, there was more seaweed up on the Seagrape and Turtle Trail beaches than down at John Brooks.  

The wind over the past couple of days was shifting south.  When the cold fronts have been coming though, many times the best erosion has been early and before the peak surf, then the wind quickly shifts to east and then south.  It would help if we'd have a sustained north wind.

I personally didn't catch any north winds with the last blow.  Maybe I missed the early north winds, because I was out of town when the front passed through Orlando.  But by the time the peak surf occurred on the Treasure Coast, the wind was easterly, which means the beaches in general won't be eroding except where there are irregularities to the angles or rocks or jetties or things like that.  But in the last few years we've had a couple of times in November when we got a high surf along with east winds, but the combined extra high tide and higher surf there eroded some of the dunes in a few spots.  Those spots were few and scattered, but they provided some good old finds.

Tet erosion I showed down at Jensen was at a spot I remember hunting maybe ten or fifteen years ago when it eroded in a very similar manner.  It produced some nice older finds.  

Many of the same spots will erode over the years and decades, but most of them have been hurt by the amount of renourishment sand we've had in recent years.  Still some of those same spots continue to erode more than other spots, even if a lot of the renourishment sand has to be removed to get back to old levels.

Some areas have been renourished so often in recent years that the areas haven't produced much for a long time.

It might help to keep a log of different areas and what they produce under different conditions.  It helps remember how the different beaches respond to different weather.  Remember under what conditions those areas have produced in the past.  

Below is a link to an old post telling a bit about how I catalog beaches that I've detected in the past.  I try to remember where the good spots were, what kind of finds were produced and under what conditions.

It is good to keep track of a lot of different spots, including those that produce under different conditions.   

The Treasure Beaches Report Direct From Florida's Treasure Coast.: 8/30/13 Report - Classifying Specific Beach Detecting Areas, Detector Coil Selection & More

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Source: SurfGuru.com.

The wind is ESE but the surf is still hitting the beaches straight on.  The high tides are still good and high.  As you can see the surf is decreasing.

Good hunting,

Treasureguide@comcast.net

12/16/24 Report - Spanish Shipbuilding in the Atlantic Colonies. More Beach Photos. A Couple New Finds.

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.

A Plague of Ships: Spanish Ships and Shipbuilding in the Atlantic Colonies, Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries by Chuk Meide is a good 42-page free online article with a nice bibliography.

Here is one paragraph to give you the flavor.

... That some of these early trading vessels were built in the colonies themselves is clear from the extant customs records (Relaciones de navíos) of the ports of Santo Domingo and Salvaleón de Higüy (on Española) and Puerto Rico and San Germán (on San Juan Bautista) now housed in the Archivo General de Indias in Seville. One such ship, a carabela latina named San Germán, made at least seven trading voyages between June 1513 and March 1517 (Turner 1998: 354-366). This vessel was constructed during 1512 and the first half of the following year, either in the protected bay of Puerto Rico or at its namesake, the port San Germán (Turner 1998: 356). San Germán is thus one of the earliest documented vessels built on the island of San Juan, and indeed anywhere in the New World. She was owned by Miguel Díaz de Aux, a wealthy businessman who had recently been appointed the King’s factor in 1512..

And here is the link.

A Plague of Ships:

Don't forget to check out the lengthy biblilography at the end of the paper.

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Turtle Trail Sunday

We had some big surf for a few days but there only scattered cuts to be found.  Some of the areas that had been decreased over the previous months were vulnerable, but the east winds had only modest effects on most beaches. 

Dj sent these photos from Turtle Trail as it looked Sunday. One dog dug some holes.

Turtle Trail Sunday.

There is still a lot of renourishment sand hanging around.  You can see a lot of it on the wide spread out beach fronts.

Turtle Trail Sunday.

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Early this morning I got out early to do a little metal detecting hunt and spent most of my time walking, but guessed right and managed to find a couple older things.  Here are the quick straight-off-the-beach  just to get them posted this morning.  The first looks like another Carlos and Johanna late series two-reale.

The second looks like it might be an encrusted broken piece of spike.  

---

The wind has decreased, and as you can see the surf will be decreasing.  The tides are still high.

Good hunting,

Treasureguide@comcast.net

12/15/24 Report - Some of the Beaches of Indian River and St. Lucie County: Photos and Conditions.

 Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.

Warning Sign At Wabasso Beach Saturday..

Today I'll give show you a number of the Treasure Coast beaches.  I've been able to inspect some on South Hutchinson Island, and DJ sent photos of some of those in Indian River County.  All of these photos were taken Saturday.  

First, above is a sign posted at Wabasso.  Besides being an indicator of dangers, it tells you something of the state of the beaches.  I'll repeat the warning on rip tides.  I remember the first time I wandered into one.  At the time I didn't know much about them, and it was a frightening.  I hate to say this, because you should definitely not venture into a tip tide, but they can create some nice treasure holes.  It is impossible to work in a rip tide anyhow but you might be able to get into the dip AFTER the water has gone down.

You can't work with a metal detector in this rough surf even if you were allowed to.  There was a time when I would work in very rough conditions, and in old posts gave some tips on how it can be done.  I recounted times when the waves hitting me in the head gave kept knocking off my headphones.  It was a real headache (actual headache).  For safety reasons, I don't advise that, and the shipwreck beaches of the Treasure Coast are under salvage leases anyhow.

It is nice when you get a good low tide and can get out to work a drop-offs on the front beach where you normally can't work.  

Almost all the beaches of the Treasure Coast are showing wide flat areas at the beach front.  A lot of renourishment sand has been dragged down and into the shallow water.  

One of my old says is, "Follow the sand, but don't catch it."  When the sand gets moved, other slower moving objects will get left behind.  You want to be where the sand just moved from.

That is another thing, when sand accumulates, and when beaches build, remember, it is coming from somewhere.

Wabasso Beach Saturday.  Photo by DJ.

.  

Wabasso Beach Saturday.  Photo by DJ.

Seagrape Trail Beach Saturday.  Photo by DJ.

Seagrape Trail Saturday.  Photo by DJ.

Turtle Trail Saturday.  Photo by DJ.

Turtle Trail Saturday.  Photo by DJ.

So there are some fo the Indian River Counry beaches.  You probably noticed that there was some recent filling.  In the photo immediately above you can see the remains of a small cut and seaweed accumulation.

Now to some South Hutchinson Island beaches.  These photos were taken Saturday.  Some of the same beaches were also photographed and posted Friday, so you can see what an additional day of slightly higher surf did to those beaches.

John Brooks Saturday.

John Brooks Saturday.

One change in John Brooks beach from Friday to Saturday is the little cut got washed away from the higher water.

Walton Rocks Saturday

Walton Rocks Saturday.

Jensen Beach Saturday.

As I mentioned in my previous post, Jensen Beach has some nice cuts and dips.  In the photo above, there is a detectorists working below one of the cuts down near the water.  That is the only detectorist I saw the past couple of days.  I'd think there would be more metal detecting with the current beach conditions.  

Jensen Beach Saturday.

Don't be afraid to take some long walks or visit places that I didn't show.  I suspect some of the better spots are away from the accesses.  I just took quick photos where I was.  I didn't have time to inspect some of the other places, which I think might be even better.

---

Source: Surfguru.com.

The tides are big, but the surf will be decreasing.

Good hunting,

TreasureGuide@comcast.net

12/14/24 Report - High Surf and Tides Open Up a Scattered Spots Despite Easterly Winds. Some Recent Modern Finds. Copilot.

 

Written by the Treasureguide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.

Saturday Afternoon Cut.

I'll start with the most important thing today.  Here it is.  The beaches have developed enough that I feel very confident in saying that some reales and treasure coins will be found on the Treasure Coast beaches during current beach metal detecting conditions.  Of course, not all, and not even most of the beaches will produce, but there are scattered spots that you will have to look for.  In terms of my old beach conditions rating scale, I'd say that as of Saturday afternoon, we are at level three conditions.  I haven't seen the Indian River County beaches in the past couple of days, but from what I've seen, I am very confident that some spots will produce.  Scattered is the key word.  You'll have to find the right spots and in some cases that might meaning walking a good distance.  If you've been paying attention to where good old things were found in the past few years, you might want to check some of those.

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Recent Finds by Mark G.

I received these find photos and the following email from Mark G. concerning his metal detecting adventures of Thursday and Friday.  First Thursday's message...

I had a lot of time to metal detect in the last week and finally got sick of parking lots and went back into the surf. Very quiet on the beaches for people and targets. For a long while I was hunting the shells for aluminum just to hear something to make sure it’s on. On my way back I went surf line.  The low tide coming in and I hit a few pennies, shiny new ones with crust. At the one end of one big hollow I hit a very high tone and I dig a women’s ring crusty black ring with stone, it’s been there a long time. I went a little further then doubled back and hit a wide men’s ring about 5 feet past where I found the women’s ring. So I keep going a little further and not wanting to get too far from the honey hole I turn and headed back and hit the golden bracelet. All pieces were very aged almost about the same, I think they all came from one person who took them off on the beach together so they wouldn’t get lost in the water, they didn’t. The stone in the ring stood up well to the tumbling not a diamond may be a gem more writing in the ring that’s hard to make out. The silver is deeply tarnished and pitted on both rings. 

Mark used Microsoft Copilot to research the markings on the silver ring.  Here is wat Copilot said.

From Copilot:

The maker's mark on your silver ring, P2 S925 ALE 50, provides some useful information:

1. S925: This indicates that the ring is made of sterling silver, which is 92.5% pure silver.
2. ALE: This is the maker's mark, representing Algot Enevoldsen, the father of Pandora's founder. It signifies that the piece is likely a Pandora product.
3. P2: This could be a model number or a specific identifier used by the manufacturer.
4. 50: This might indicate the size of the ring, possibly the ring size or a specific code used by the manufacturer. 

Based on the maker's mark P2 S925 ALE 50, it's likely that your ring is a Pandora piece, specifically designed by Algot Enevoldsen, the father of Pandora's founder. However, without more specific information or a date code, it's difficult to determine the exact year it was made.

On Friday Mark went out again.  He stopped at John Brooks and hunted the small cut I showed yesterday and got a fish hook and a penny.  That is about what you would expect from a small cut like that.

 He then did the parking lot and found the following.

What Mark G. Found in the
John Brooks Parking Lot Friday.

Thanks for sharing Mark.  

Copilot appears to be a good tool for researching marked finds.

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If you haven't used Mircrosoft Copilot before and want to try it out, use copilot.microsoft.com

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Source: Surfguru.com.

The surf is going to increase a bit more tomorrow. The high tides are good and high.  

The hot spots would be more widespread if we had some better angles from the waves, but there are, as I said, still some good spots.  

It is a good time to get out there and search out those better spots.

Good hunting,

Treasureguide@comcast.net