Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.
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| Cannon Emplacement On One of the Peaks of Pigeon Island. Personal Vacation Photo. |
Yesterday I mentioned a memorable hunt on Pigeon Island, St. Lucia. I showed some British military buttons and also mentioned a memorable fail. By memorable fail, I mean a mistake that was very memorable. That memorable fail was a failure to recognize a dug flint and musket cock when it was dug. Now I'm sure I would recognize those items.
Another memorable fail in the same area was digging some kind of lead or pewter item that looked like some type of insignia or hat badge or something like that, which crumbled when dug. I'll long remember that one too. Maybe there was not way to save that one, but maybe I could have done something better. You might make some memorable fails when you make finds before you have the experience or knowledge level handle a find well. You can and should always learn something from memorable fails.
Anyhow, one of the other memorable finds I made on the St. Lucia outing was the following item.
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| Dug Item That Remained a Mystery Item For Years. |
When I dug this item, I thought it went on rod or something. I thought it might be a finial. It appears I was mistaken about that for years. I'm pretty sure now that it is soldier art. It is hand carved lead in the shape of a cannon.
It was found within ten yards of a cannon that still stood on the spot. The actual cannon was at an emplacement very much like the one shown at the top of this post, although it was on a different part of the island.
Back years ago, someone in this blog sent an email suggesting it was soldier art in the shape of a cannon, and after additional inspection, I now feel pretty sure that is right.
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| Closer View of Miniature Lead Cannon |
Taking a closer view, you can see the many individual strokes impressed in the lead.
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| Carvings On Patinated Lead Item. |
I think it was probably made by an 18th or early 19th century British soldier stationed on Pigeon Island.
Many of the features, including the end of the miniature lead cannon very much resembles the cannon that was still nearby. Those features have convinced that the miniature lead cannon was copied after the actual cannon near where the miniature was dug.
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| Cannon On Pigeon Island. |
Here is a minuature cannon that sold in a Sedwick treasure auction.
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| Miniature Cannon Sold At Auction. Source: Sedwick Auction Catalog. |
The more I observed the similarities between the carved lead cannon and the real cannon, the more convinced I was that there was a relationship.
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| Pigeon Island Photo From Pinterest With Arrow and Star Added To Show Cannon Emplacements. |
I did a post on detecting steep areas like that. See The Treasure Beaches Report Direct From Florida's Treasure Coast.: 9/22/16 Report - Pigeon Island. How To Metal Detect a Steep Hillside. Spys In The American Revolution.
You should strive to learn something from every outing. Despite differences in locations, it is often a good idea to hunt areas that won't be hit by other detectorists. It is also a good idea to check areas of erosion, whether you are talking about a beach or an island or some other type of site.
Finds were generally made on steeper areas of the island that eroded rather than on the nice flat easy to detect areas where most detectorist would probably spend their time.
I don't know how many years it was before I determined the identity of the mystery item, but I know it was a few. I didn't have access to all the research resources provided by the internet back when I found the item, which made a big difference.
In any case, to me it was a memorable find, perhaps made more memorable by the prolonged mystery of the item and the eventual solution.
I couldn't find some of my better photos from Pigeon Island but maybe I'll post more of them in the future when I find them.
I also found some rings back at the resort where I was staying, but they weren't nearly as memorable as the first old military finds.
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The surf on the Treasure Coast will be running two to three feet for a few days.
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More sadness with the elementary school shooting.
Some will try to use the tragedy to progress the same kind of misguided objectives that got us here.
Good hunting,
Treasureguide@comcast.net