LordM October 2017 giveaway (theme: "Treasures & Discoveries")

Discussion in 'World Coins' started by lordmarcovan, Oct 1, 2017.

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  1. sonlarson

    sonlarson World Silver Collector

    Entry post


    This is a story I posted here about 5 years ago. It's a story about a special coin I found. I think it needs retelling. I like to think all of us have similar events that they could share. Your contest made me think about it again, Thanks.

    ************************************************************

    UNCLE JOE'S COIN



    Somewhere in our past someone planted the seed to start us on our lifelong journey in our quest to collect coins. Perhaps it was your parent, a sibling, a relative, friend or co-worker. In my case it was an uncle. Uncle Joe. Joe was the youngest of 11 brothers and sisters on my Mother's side. A large Sicilian family. Joe was 12 years old when I was born, so he was still a teenager when I can first remember him.

    He used to give my brothers and I, his old comics. I recall an entire collection of “Classics”, which no one seems to know what happened to. Plus some the original superhero comics from the 50's and 60's. Also lost.

    When I was about 13-14 years old, Joe introduced me to his coin collection. Mostly cents, which was his favorite, but a few older coins that at the time I didn't recognize. He gave me a cent folder and explained that the object was to fill all the holes. He also taught me about the holy grail of cent collection, the 1909-S VDB, and the 1955 DDO. One of my brothers and I shared a paper route and collected pop bottles to make pocket money. No such thing as an allowance, we had to work for our money. I began searching rolls of cents. Every roll I search I expected to find the 1909-S VDB or the 1955 DDO. We lived in a small town in Arkansas which only had two local banks. I would alternate swapping rolls. Sometime I might make two or three trips to the bank in a single day. I had to walk to and from the house to the bank, which was about a mile. Only one car in the family and Dad used it to go to work. My passion slowed down after a few years when I stared to noticed that cars, music, and girls were more interesting than coins and that pursuit was also burning a hole in my pocket. There was also this war in South East Asia demanding a lot of attention.

    I never really lost my interest in coins, but, it was on a back burner for over 30 years.

    In 1993, Joe died at the young age of 52. His estate was handle by one of my uncles (he collected silver during the early 50's and 60's but is very private about his collection) It was about 12 years before Mom received anything from this estate. Somehow she got part of Joe's collection of coins. Mostly the cents. She gave all the coins to me. Nothing rare or exotic, but it filled a lot of my empty spaces and relit the fire. The passion came back stronger than ever.

    Several days ago, I spent an entire day cleaning out the attic. I came across the old suitcase that belonged to Joe. Mom told me about the suitcase. She said it used to belong to dad and that he gave it to Joe many years ago. I opened it and showed her the remnants of Joe's coin collection. A lot of empty boxes and empty coin folders. I removed all the contents and set them aside when she picked up the coin folders and asked me if their were any coins in them. I told her no, they were empty. She then proceeds to open them and found an 1899 Barber Dime in G4 condition. How in the world did I miss that? I also found a safety deposit key envelope with 5 uncirculated 1971-S cents.

    Mom asked if the coin was worth anything and I told her about $4. I gave the suitcase to Goodwill and finished cleaning up my mess. I got an eerie feeling about the lost coin. Was there anything special about it? An omen? Why was it hiding up there all these years?

    The only significant thing I could attach to the coin is that on 11/26/12, Joe would have been 72 years old. Mom now has only one brother and one sister living. She is the oldest.

    I placed that lonely 1899 Barber Dime in a special coin holder and I am giving it to Mom on Joe's birthday. I think that would make it special and reveal why it has been in hiding all these years.

    A few days ago I read an article written by Dr. Dean Miltmore in 1945. He reported after studying at least 1000 cases of mental illness, that not one was even remotely interested in collection coins, or any other object. “For the average person, with the cares and worries of everyday life, a collector's hobby should have a definite place in mental hygiene”.

    That proves that I, and all the rest of us coin collectors are “not crazy”.

    Mike Larson
    11/19/2012

    ************************************************************
    I printed up the story above on nice stationary and framed it. I gave it to my mother along with the coin. Mom is 89 years now and she still has the framed letter and the coin.

    1899 Barber Dime Slab.jpg
     
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  3. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    Got my change and there was a War nickel in it. Asked the clerk if there were more in the drawer and there were - like six or eight, as I recall. Enough that I could tell we had ourselves a hoard situation. So since he was friendly and not too busy, I had the clerk get all the nickel rolls from the safe. This was tedious since the safe had a time release and would only spit out one roll every few minutes, but that gave me time to check through each roll while waiting for the next to come out.

    There ended up being 4-6 rolls' worth, as I recall. All pre-1960 coins, and mostly pre-1950, and over 80% of them were War nickels!

    All the War nickels had a trace of blackish, oily residue, as though they had been in the bilge of an old boat for a long time. (We can name this "The Bilgewater Hoard", I suppose.) I didnt mind the scuz a bit. I tipped the clerk a few bucks and went home to soak my gunky treasures in dish detergent.

    Later I hit a 3-4 roll bonanza of 40% silver Kennedy halves at my credit union, thanks to the head teller remembering I was a collector. Every coin in those rolls was a 40% silver except for one which was a 90% silver 1964 half.
     
    Last edited: Oct 10, 2017
  4. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    Sometimes a coin's monetary value is irrelevant, and it's all about the sentimental value. Thanks for retelling that.
     
  5. Paddy54

    Paddy54 Well-Known Member

    Entry Post Here's a reprint of a post of mine from back in 2009. Since the theme is treasure and finds I do believe this post should we say fit's the bill......
    The Johanna Wreck

    Soon after the second Anglo-Dutch war,1665-1667 first mention was made of the Johanna in 1671 when under the capt.Hopefar Bendall she made a voyage lasting one year. She was a big ship of her time with only the great warships like the Duke of York flagship,the Royal Charles,1665 tons and the Royal Oak,1021 tons, all mounting 80 and more heavy cannons. The Johanna was 500 tons 3 decks high and mounting 36 heavy cannons.She was race built ship, a term derived from the French word RAS, meaning shaven or flat, and had fine lines with little superstructure. She was built in as period when there was an English maritime consolidation just after the humiliating defeat by the hands of the Dutch when they sailed up the mouths of the Thames & Medway rivers and caused so much destruction of the English war ships.
    The Johanna approached the southernmost coast of Africa Cape Agulhas in early hours of the morning on the 29 th of May 1682 She ran aground as she struck hard and broke up. Ten of her crew did not make it . These men were the first English graves known in Africa. as a reef wreck her coins were washed by the heavy surf. This is one of the only 7400 Mexican reales recovered from her goods salvaged. The feel of this coin is buttery smooth...funny how most of the coin is wore off but the top of the cross is still very clear. I have more on the story of the Johanna feel free to Pm me and I will be more than happy to e mail you a copy of the complete story of this Ship Wreck. Enjoy Paddy Date 1665-1682 Carlos ll 8 reale Mexico City 25 Gr. recovered from the Johanna sunk June 8 1682

    The Rest of the Story

    First I like to thank all of you who enjoyed this post. I like to thank "Regandon" for the nomination. I feel now that I need to finish this story because I received so many good comps. on it . I hope you will enjoy.

    The first mention of the Johanna going to the far east was in 1673 when under Capt. Bendall she sailed to St. Helena and Bantam in the spice islands.She made another trip to the east in 1679 traveling to Surat before her last fateful voyage.
    This voyage was the first for Capt. Robert Brown when he left the Downs,east Kent and sheltered by the Goodwin Sands on the 24 th February 1682. She was destined to Surat on the west coast of India where the English held a shaky alliance with the Dutch to trade jointly after the
    Portuguese were ousted by the English in 1612.

    The Johanna left the Downs in the accompany of four other English ships, the Williamson, Nathaniel, Welvaart, and Samson, alll except for the Johanna were bound for Bengal.

    The Johanna and the Welvaart approached the southern most tip of Africa, Cape Agulhas in the early hours of the morning on the 29 th May1682.There was a shift of the wind from south east to east south east and there were heavy cross winds.

    The Johanna changed course slightly and ran into one of the most dangerous areas of the South African coast. She struck hard and fast and almost immediately started breaking up. The welvaart also nearly met her fate that night but was able to throw anchor and wait the few hours till morning and escape the jaws of the rocky S.A. coast. The Welvaart did not stop and attempt to save the crew of the Johanna.

    It was hopeless situation for the Johanna. She was virtually surrounded by jaggeder reefs and she was breaking up fast. The crew were able to make rafts and slowly crossed the one dilometer stretch of water to shore. Ten did not make it.
    The first survivors arrived at the castle late in the evening on the 18th June and told the terrifying story of the wrecking of the Johanna.
    More and more men arrived at the castle when on the 27th June 104 men had survived the ordeal.

    Simon van de Stell was eager to learn about the Johanna and got a commitment from the capt. saying that the wreck was a total write off and because of the difficult terrain and high mountains it was not possible to do any salvage of the Johanna. Simon van der Stell had heard that she was carrying a valuable cargo and he was now anxious to repatriate the survivors as soon as possible. Un be known to Capt. Brown ,van der Stell had already dispatched ensign Olaf Bergh to the wreck site in a cloud of secrecy on the 22th June . Van der Stell mangaed to get most of the survivors on 3 ships bound for Batavia on the 8th July , exactly one month after the wrecking.

    The survivors, totally destitute started the long trek west wards to Cape town castle. They were shown the way and helped along by friendly natives,who according to the English statement had not helped, the English would have certainly perished.

    Before the survivors left for Batavia , van der Stell had already received a dispatch from Olaf Bergn at the wreck site. Four men under the command of the ensign Bergh took 8 days to get to the wreck site. The men whose names were Aernout Calcoen, Christoffel Henningh, Jurgen Klingh & Olaf Bergh found that she had broken to pieces on the rocks. After having walked along the beach they found the following articles that had been washed up: 20 mum pipes 1 cask wine;2 casks ships beer; 26 casks tar pitch; 1 copper cooks kettle; 80 bottles of wine and brandy and a broken empty money chest lying on the beach.

    Bergh requested vab der Stell to send one of the English survivors to show them where the hull had struck[waar de bodem was gebleven] so they could get the specie out of her. A small section of the after part was sticking on a rock and as the sloop from the Johanna was badly damaged they had to repair it before they could sail out to it.
    On July 1st Bergh burred 4 corpses that they found lying on the beach and these graves must represent the first English graves in South Africa.

    They continued looking for more washed up wreckage during low tide and managed to find among the rocks 613 reales.

    Then on the morning of the 6 th July they again set out and to their astonishment found a chest lying on the rocks. The chest a very poor looking chest was kept together with iron hoops and the cover was attached by copper wire. The whole thing was about to fall apart and certainly would not lasted another high tide. When they opened it they found 15 bags of Spanish dollars.Over the next couple of days they found 1 ship metal bell, weighing 40 lbs, 1 iron anvil, 4 broken tin dishes and 3 iron cannons, 2-12 and 1-8 ponder that were still under water,but with the sufficient force of men could easily be raised. Also 1 anchor, 1 small copper mortar and pestle and various ropes and blocks.

    Olaf Bergh asked if a carpenter with all his tools be sent to the site to enable them to repair the sloop.Simon van de Stell also offered to send a native diver,by the name of Pay Minah to dive among the wreckage.There is no record of this diver being successful among Berghs journals but a reference was made by Bergh in 1686 whilst salvaging the Nostra Signora de los Miliagros that pay Minah was very successful.

    Simon van der Stell despatched 2 ships mates to the site to familiarise themselves with the area and sent them out again in the Jupiter with the instructions that they are to proceed with the first favourable wings to the spot where the English ship wrecked and to collect the salvageed materials.

    The Mate of the Jupiter ,Reynier Dadel set sail on the 12 th August and on the evening of the 15th they approached the low west point where the Johanna was wrecked slightly to the east [ Quoin point] . He then sailed behind the surf eastwards when they saw a fire burning and guessed it to be Berghs camp.They sailed a bit further until they came to a large reef and they then then concluded that they were about the most important information given in the journals that aided the rediscovery of the Johanna.

    The Jupiter could not find any suitable anchorage in the area and the following day she proceeded southwards and rounded the cape Agulhas and found excellent achorage in Struys Bay. The mates did extensive soundings of the bay and this was the first survey done of the bay.

    Olaf Bergh transmitted the salvaged goods over land to Struys Bay and on the 7th September , nearly 3 months after he arrived at the Johanna site he left for Cape town.
    The total value of tthe goods salvaged by Bergh amounted to 28302 guilden and including 2000 pirilease reales, 7400 Mexican reales, and 34 reales. Altogether a very successful expedition and in the resolutions of council of policy Bergh and his men were honored. Bergh received rds 100 and a mum pipe [brunswick beer} , the other 3 men received 100 guilden each and the person who found the money chest Rds 12. This was reward for the vigilance they displayed. Another expedition was planned by van der Stell in December 1682 and the idea was to send down divers on the Johanna but no confirmed report have been found in the Archives.

    Now in the 3 images below you'll see several well known people, These images were given to me by Mel Fisher's Captain who happen to sell me the Johanna Cob.
    In the 3rd image you'll see a bag of Emeralds being tossed . The bag of stones came from the Ship wreck Atocha the two people playing toss are none other then Mel Fisher and his captain. You will also notice in the first 2 photos a large group of people on a ship . Mel is there as this is the day the Atocha was found and a party celebrating the find.... anyone see Jimmy Buffett in the photo? :) MVC_001S.JPG MVC_002S.JPG MVC_003S.JPG

    DSCN4243.jpg DSCN4244.jpg The Cob 8 Reales

    Hope you enjoyed the read......and the images. The real value of this to me is the history. Now this cob in my collection for the last 10 plus years places me in that history....until my mortal soul moves on and this cob does also....to the next chapter of hopefully a never ending story..... :)
     
    Last edited: Oct 10, 2017
  6. lehmansterms

    lehmansterms Many view intelligence as a hideous deformity

    I am familiar with the coin of which you speak - I have a specimen of this same type which is a Nuremberg jeton - mass-produced in the 18th & 19th centuries before jetons used for calculating morphed into gaming tokens and eventually into poker and casino "chips"
    One of the researchers evaluating finds from this shipwreck recalled having seen a photo of my specimen (so some people DO visit my website, occasionally) was in contact with me for metrology, photos and what I knew about it (not all that much, really, but later in the jeton-using era, classical coin designs were a common thematic inspiration. I suppose it might be possible, but personally, I would be very surprised if this jeton dated back as far as 1685 - the style and fabric follow the later types. Notwithstanding the piece in question being found in the excavation of the LaBelle, I wonder whether it might not have been an accidental loss centuries later which just coincidentally happened to land on the LaBelle site.

    The Jeton:
    [​IMG]
    Æ (brass) 28mm, 7.25g. Nuremberg jeton - large size - Jetons at this time tended to be manufactured in two or three different stock sizes, the smaller ones being less expensive.
    IMP • OTHO • CAESAR • AVG • TRI • POT • / PAX • ORBIS • TERRARVM •
    Pax standing left holding olive-branch and caduceus
    The prototype denarius Cf. RIC 6 (This is actually RIC 4 with a shorter obverse legend, but it's a better photo of the general type)
    [​IMG]
    Although the style of the jeton is far more representative of the modern era, this is a relatively faithful copy of an actual Otho denarius.
     
  7. BlackBeard_Thatch

    BlackBeard_Thatch Captain of the Queen Anne's Revenge

    today's the day! Such a great read thanks for sharing!
     
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  8. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    An archaeological intrusion of an 18th to 19th century jeton on La Salle's 17th century wreck offshore strains my credulity just a tiny bit, but I suppose anything is possible, and stranger things have happened, as my own finds attest.

    I'll have to search up the photos of that coin - or whatever it is. The website where I found it was quite fascinating, with all the other artifacts and remains of the wreck (including the remains of at least one unfortunate crewman, as I recall).

    Your "It's a Nuremberg jeton" theory does make sense to me, now that I think of it, even if the presence of one on the wreck does not. Perhaps that type of jeton actually does date back to ca.1685? That would make more sense. And the style of the one you posted does not look at all inconsistent with other late 17th century (Louis XIV, etc.) jetons I have seen, though I do not profess much knowledge of them.
     
    Last edited: Oct 11, 2017
  9. lehmansterms

    lehmansterms Many view intelligence as a hideous deformity

    I wish I had a decent reference for jetons, but aside from a few somewhat "homemade" websites, there seems to be very little written that is more than a footnote in the "exonumia" section of references which only grudgingly touch on exonumia. Of course it is possible this is a later 17th century piece - I don't have a good way to date them. Many Nuremberg jetons inspired by the elaborate French jetons were created with portraits of the French monarchy and with "dates" within the reigns of the pictured Kings and/or of a battle or other event the jeton commemorates. A few of those I have seen write-ups about and the "dates" on them are typically off by a century or more, they being popular types, they were continually minted over decades/centuries.
    This is one of the prettier Nuremberg jetons "dated" to the late 17th/early 18th century - I'm not sure why I don't have the Feuerdent number for it, but in the excerpt of Feuerdent in which I found it, it is "dated" to 1666 - however, I believe copies based on this pattern and many others honoring the "golden age" of Sun King, Louis XIV were struck throughout the 18th century:
    [​IMG]
    French style Nuremberg Jeton - Louis XIV, 1643-1714 (ND. 1666)
    Æ 25mm, 4.12g, 6h.
    Obv: LOVIS•XIV•ROY• - DE•FR•ET•DE•NAV. Bust right with elaborate curls and fancy dress.
    Rx: •AVDAX•IRE•VIAS•; in ex, •ORDINAIRE•DES• / •GVERRES•. Radiate Sun-face to left of Zodiacal arc of Cancer, Leo and Scorpio; ie: Sun is in Gemini, Louis XIV's birth-sign; in sky with clouds above grassy plain.

    This is a more typical Nuremberg jeton with Louis XIV portrait:
    [​IMG]
    French style Nuremberg Jeton - (ND, 1690-1695).
    Louis XIV, 1643-1714
    Æ 26mm, 4.38g, 6h.
    Obv: •LVDOVICVS• MAGNVS • REX• Laureate bust right; N beneath truncation.
    Rx: * ARMORVM * - * PRIMITIAE * around top above escutcheon with three towers atop standard planted amidst a pile of captured arms; in ex, • MONS • MEDIVS • / • CAPT •.
    LVDOVICVS MAGNVS REX / ARMORVM PRIMITIAE / MONS MEDIVS CAPT Shield on staff above pile of arms.
    Cf. Feuerdent 7829.

    This is another in a smaller size (ca. 19mm) which goes to great lengths to imitate the French prototypes:
    [​IMG]
    French style Nuremberg Jeton by Lazarus Gottlieb Lauffer, (ND, 1710?).
    Louis XIV, 1643-1714
    Æ 19mm, 1.31g, 6h.
    Obv: LVDOVICVS - MAGNVS •REX• Elaborately coiffed and dressed bust right.
    Rx: IOHANN • WEIDI-NGERS • RECHE •PF• "French Arms", 3 Fleurs de Lis on crowned shield within wreath.

    So, I truly only know a little about these, although I have been "accumulating" them since the early '80's - research has been a halting, on-again, off-again process as I encounter their matches in sales, etc, in the absence of a really decent catalog with which to classify them and accurately date them.

    As I recall the CIQ, it was in terrible shape, overall - I probably saw the same bad photo you saw - the corrosion processes had nearly completely destroyed it. That, at least, is commensurate with it being submerged for 300 years and it makes it difficult to tell whether or not there had been significant wear before loss which could be a factor in confirming its context within the LaBelle wreck.

    I didn't have a date for the wreck of the LaBelle at the time, and that caught me a bit my surprise since this piece has always impressed me as seeming later than the 1680's - but you learn something new every day, if you're lucky.
     
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  10. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    I found the page that shows the Otho coin/jeton that was found on La Salle's 1686 La Belle shipwreck.

    Here it is. Obviously they've used a noncorroded Otho denarius as a comparison in their photo.
    [​IMG]
     
  11. CircCam

    CircCam Victory

    Entry Post

    The first and only set I have ever completed thus far is a Whitman album of Jefferson Nickels from '38-57'. I found them by searching any change jar I could get my hands on, junk bins, and by searching rolls I'd get from a local convenience store who preferred to give them out as cash back instead of cash whenever possible.

    I did end up having to buy the 1939-D and 1950-D outright at the dealer as the final coins to complete it, but it was a fun ride and felt great to actually put together a set of circulation coins... my father collected Indians and wheat Lincolns from circulation as a kid and I'm grateful I got to experience that side of collecting.

    Anyway, during my nickel book days I read several times about the coins in the series I would likely never find in circulation. One of them was the 1939-S (Mintage :6.6 Million.)

    In one of the final rolls I bought before buying the keys at the dealer and completing it, I happily discovered this 1939-S.

    1939-S copy 2.png

    Nothing to write home about, but I love imagining the journey this coin took to make it from the mint to a Loomis roll at a gas station in Washington State in 2016, and then into my album. It's the scarcest coin I've come across in circulation.

    When my daughter gets older, I plan to take her on metal detecting adventures (she is three but already loves coins from finding the "treasure" I hide for her at the park) so hopefully many greater discoveries are in the future... for now this is what I got. :)

    Here's the set (I bought another 39-S for it and keep the above in a display by my desk) :

    IMG_5353 copy.JPG
    IMG_5356 copy.JPG
    IMG_5368 copy.JPG

    Thanks for holding the giveaway, @lordmarcovan!
     
  12. coin_nut

    coin_nut Well-Known Member

    Loomis, cool. I am an old Okanogan hand too. Mt. Hull, Bonaparte Lake area, Chesaw, Bodie. Love that country. Bonaparte Lake.jpg
     
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  13. rooman9

    rooman9 Lovin Shiny Things

    Entry post:

    A couple years ago I was searching through a bucket of nickels my Dad keeps (he thinks they'll be worth more in melt than face value someday) and I found a proof 1959 Jefferson. Still in decent shape so it hadn't been in circulation for too long.


    Another story, my only real digging for treasure one. About 6 years ago my Grandparents asked me to come help them with some chores. I went there and they told me they had bought some gold and silver years ago and buried it underneath the house. So down I went into the crawl space under the house and went a digging. Took a couple of hours but I think I got it all. Mostly just junk silver with a handful of gold coins but still fun!


    I also had a Great Aunt pass away a couple of years ago. She never married or had kids and had lived in the same house her entire life. Her family had built and owned the house since 1904. Talk about treasures. I got probably $50 face of silver just from old change lying around the house. A nice record player and many many old books. I also found out she lived in Samoa for a couple of years and actually became friends with the King there when she mistook his private car for a taxi. I still believe there's some Gold hidden somewhere in that house, but never could find any.
     
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  14. CamaroDMD

    CamaroDMD [Insert Clever Title] Supporter

    Entry Post

    I have never had any major finds but a few things have come my way here and there. Here is one of those times.

    When I was a kid, I got really interested in coins. This was in the later 1990s and started visiting a little local coin shop called "Al's Stamps and Coins." He didn't have a ton of stuff, but it was a fun place to hang out and hear stories and before long I was hooked.

    At the time, I was totally unfocused in my collecting and bought anything I could. I was in a more quantity over quality mindset. I bought coins of all different types, proof sets, mint sets, ect. I was basically a hoarder to the extent that my modest budget would allow.

    Well, time went on. Al got older and eventually had to retire (he actually passed away last year). I got older, moved away and went to grad school and left my childhood "coin hoard" at home. I got married, started a family and eventually decided that it was time to move the last of my old stuff out of my parents house including the "coin hoard." I began to go through the coin hoard trying to decide what to keep for me in my more "adult collection," what to save for my kids and what go get rid of.

    I found a box full of old proof sets that I had bought...mostly $5 each or less. I went though them and there was nothing of note...except for one stood out. It was from 1979. I had unknowingly purchased a 1979 Proof Set with a Type 2 SBA. I'll bet I paid less than $5 for it and it sat forgotten in a box for well over a decade. I was quite surprised to find it. I kept that one.

    [​IMG]
     
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  15. coin_nut

    coin_nut Well-Known Member

    Heck, I am almost 68 years old and that line describes me and my coin habit pretty well.
     
  16. CamaroDMD

    CamaroDMD [Insert Clever Title] Supporter

    I will admit...there is still a bit drive inside of me to do that. But, I get overwhelmed with trying to store the coins and admire them. Also...my wife doesn't like me having so much "stuff." Haha.
     
  17. Maxfli

    Maxfli Well-Known Member

    ENTRY POST

    While still a young child, I discovered treasure buried inside a small, dark brown plastic box measuring approximately 4.5 inches square by 2 inches tall. Little could I know at the time that this discovery would be a shaping force in my life for decades to come.

    The box resided on the dresser in my parents’ bedroom, and when I was old enough to be trusted not to swallow or destroy the contents, I was allowed a peek inside.

    The box contained an assortment of foreign coins and paper currency brought back from World War II by my father and two of his brothers.

    There was money from the Philippines, Japan, China and other countries in the Pacific Theater where my dad and one uncle served, and money from Italy, France, Belgium and the like, courtesy of the other uncle who had fought in Europe.

    Had that small plastic box been a chest full of pirate gold, I could not have been more captivated by it. I spent countless hours over the next few years studying this haphazard assortment of foreign money, and as my reading skills developed, studying the countries of origin in my family’s set of Funk & Wagnalls encyclopedias.

    Later, as an early teen, I became interested in US coins when an older cousin showed my his Whitman folders filled with cents, nickels, dimes and quarters. But world coins were, and still are, my first love, and I have no doubt it's because of that small plastic “treasure chest” I discovered in my parents’ bedroom.

    P.S. Thank you, Rob, for staging another contest. You perform a great service to the forum by getting these things rolling.
     
  18. Hiddendragon

    Hiddendragon World coin collector

    It was similar for me. My mom had something on her dresser with a few Mercury dimes and some pesos from my parents' trip to Mexico in it, and my dad had some German coins from his time in the Army there in the 60s. Later my grandparents, who had owned a bar, gave me some random foreign coins and a few U.S. silvers they had picked up over the years, along with some foreign coins that I think were from one of my grandpa's brothers who served in WWII. That was the start of my collection.
     
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  19. Maxfli

    Maxfli Well-Known Member

    Interesting how a handful of coins, tossed like seeds on the ground before an inquisitive child, can take root and grow into something that lasts for a lifetime.
     
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  20. Treashunt

    Treashunt The Other Frank

    "entry post"

    Thanks for the opportunity.

    I have been metal detecting since about 1998.

    In those days I was primarily a dirt 'fisher'.

    One day I was at the local school yard, I wanted to get some time in before my company arrived in a hour or two.

    As you may recall this was way before cell phones, so I had to keep an eye on my watch so I wouldn't be late.


    Anyway this is how it went:

    THE STAR SAPPHIRE
    It was a beautiful sunny Sunday morning, and I was itching to get out of the house, even though we were expecting company in an hour or two. Finally I promised my wife that I would be back in time, grabbed my battery pack and flew to an area of a local park that I had noticed earlier that week.
    Gratefully the field was empty, or I probably would have gone elsewhere, and this would never have been written. I have developed a strong phobia to crowds and prefer the quite of an empty field to the incessant questions of little nosy voices, which I usually spend a lot of time answering, but today I only had a little bit of time. Anyway, I slowly walked across the field, and picked or dug up a few clad coins, finally I turned around and decided that perhaps this area wasn't as good as I had hoped.
    Retracing my steps, I decided to work a pattern around a small soccer field. The pickings started to increase as I slowed down and I was ready to leave for the car when I got a hit for a zinc cent. Since I have never been too lazy to dig a cent, I checked and got a depth of three and a half inches, which seemed to be pretty deep for a zinc cent. Perhaps, I thought, I'll luck into an Indian cent. One neatly cut hole later, I though that I had dug a large lump of gold foil. Picking it up, I felt the weight, and then looked again, but very closely.
    My eyes almost bugged out of my head when I realized that I had found my first large man's ring, with a dark stone. I nearly flew to the car, since I was now almost surely going to be late, and must have flown the distance home.
    Later that day, after my company had left, I finally cleaned off my find, and showed it to my wife and kids. They (the children) thought that it was "neat" but my wife wasn't overly impressed, it wasn't a large diamond!
    Little was she to suspect that the ring would later appraise for nearly as much as a diamond ring would have.
    Later research revealed that the sapphire is a gem, best known in a blue color. This color, called cornflower blue, is from Kashmir, and is the standard that jewelers use when evaluating sapphires. When the sapphire has starlike rays, the effect is called asterism. These gems have the most value and are highly desired.

    As I was to find out while I tried to have my ring appraised, the black star is far less available than the typical blue star sapphire and is so infrequently encountered that I had a difficult time finding someone to appraise it properly.
    Sorry to say, my wife would still have preferred that I find a nice large diamond ring, but, for now, I'll be happy with my beautiful black star sapphire.
     
  21. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator


    Well, the drawing is done, the random.org random number generator has spoken, and we have October's giveaway winner!

    It is @ace71499, for Post#19!

    Oct2017giveaway.png

    PM me your snailmail address, @ace71499, and you've got yourself an Admiral Gardner shipwreck coin a-comin'! :D
     
    Theodosius, Nyatii, rooman9 and 2 others like this.
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