Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com.
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Bent Coins.
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There are always those unanswerable questions. Maybe they aren't really unanswerable, but they seem that way at the time.
I've long wondered about the many bent coins I've found. I probably found 50 or so, and most of them were found in South Florida, but that is where I found the largest number of modern coins. The vast majority were found in the shallow water or low tide zone near the water line. A lot of them came from areas where I found a lot of coral rocks packed together, which led me to think they might get caught in the rocks and bent that way. Another possibility that I considered is getting bent in beach cleaning machines, but some of them come from areas where I've never seen beach cleaning machines.
I've found most denominations bent like that, some more bent than others, but looking at the dime above, for example, it would seem to take a lot of force and although people could do it, it wouldn't be easy.
I don't know why someone would bend a coin like that, but there was a superstition that a bent coin could change one's luck. Another tradition is that carrying a bent coin in a purse would keep the purse full. And then there were "witching coins" and love tokens. So I guess there are several possibilities. Many of the bent coins were found in areas where Santeria and other religious items were occasionally found.
But it isn't only coins that get bent. On the Treasure Coast I've found other items that are bent, folded or squashed. For example this United States Air Force ring was squashed.
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Squashed Air Force Ring
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It is not silver or gold - just some fairly soft metal.
I left it the way I found it for a long time but eventually got curious enough that I tried to open it to see if there were any marks inside, and it broke. I found no marks due to the heavy crust and corrosion.
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Broken Piece of Ring.
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It looks like it was plated at one time. The metal was brittle.
I can't remember if I've found bent coins on the Treasure Coast, but if I have, it wasn't as many as I found down south. Other bent and folded metals are found on the Treasure Coast in good numbers though. This year I've found folded pieces of lead and other metals, but they are much easier to bend than coins.
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Folded and Bent Dug Metals.
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I still don't have my answers. I don't know how coins get so dramatically bent, and don't know if it is done by man, nature or both.
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Bill P had an example of the type of mistake I described yesterday. Here is his.
I remember one (of many)mistakes that occurred while beach hunting. A couple asked me to search for a diamond bracelet they had just lost. I found it quickly but in my haste, cut it in half with my shovel, oops. Needless to say they weren't thrilled about me even though that could have been repaired easily by a jeweler.
Thanks Bill.
That made me think of chains, which can be difficult enough to get in your scoop, but you can also dig into them.
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Cristobal sat over land for a few days but is now out in the Gulf and headed towards Louisiana. Here is what the NHC is saying.
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We'll have a one or two foot surf for the next few days. Now we're having some nice big tides.
Remembering D-Day,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net