MD year 2006
Zot
Posts: 825 ✭✭✭
While I hope I’m jumping the gun with this post, as I still plan to do some hunts this year
, I thought I’d share this summary of my finds of 2006.I’ve been pounding several countries over the year, with both land and water detectors.
Nearly all of my better finds have been posted on this board during the year, so I’m also including links to the original stories (in some cases the same story is shared by more than one find).
It’s been great fun looking at everyone’s finds throughout the year! Although I’ve not posted very often at times, I’ve been reading everything…
Here goes:
Coins
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It was a good year for coinshooting.
I didn’t get that definitive killer coin this year, but I did much better than last year overall - much more 1800’s coins, for example. For some reason I’m always more excited when I find an 1800’s coin, e.g. compared to one from 1910. I guess the 1800’s is an “old coin” threshold for me that gets me excited.
Here is my top dozen of coins for the year. The ranking is loosely based on age, rarity, condition, and Zot fudge factor (e.g. random coolness points due to events during the hunt) etc…
Ranking the coins was surprisingly hard. I’ve reshuffled the list a couple of times and every time it feels like one or two coins are in the wrong spot. Anyway, here is my list:
1. Swedish 2 Öre Silvermynt (Copper), 1749. Found in Finland.
This is the oldest coin I got this year. Found very unexpectedly and was surprisingly shallow too.
As you can see in the comparison picture with a US quarter, it’s a huge coin. Well preserved for being a copper this old. I dug absolutely everything is the area around it, but didn’t find anything else. Link to original thread
* * *
2. Danish 4 Skilling, 1854. Found in Denmark.
Found in Denmark in March, as the snow was just starting to melt.
Link to original thread
* * *
3. Irish George III Penny, 1805. Found in Ireland.
Was in horrible condition when found. This is a large and thick coin that felt very rewarding to find. Found in a trashy area where I wasn’t expecting to find anything good at all.
Link to original thread
* * *
4. Finnish 1 Penni, 1869 (Tsar Alexander II). Found in Finland.
A small and fragile coin that doesn't look like much, but these early Alexander II 1 penni's with dotted border are rather tough coins (much tougher than some of the larger denominations of the same era), and have some value in all grades. One of my best coins this year for sure.
Link to original thread
* * *
5. Swedish 1/4 Skilling, 1809-1830. Found in Finland.
A surprising find with my water detector on a beach that had never produced 1800’s material before.
Condition is not too bad for being a copper this old on a beach.
Link to original thread
* * *
6. British Victoria Halfpenny (young head), 1854 Found in Ireland.
I had to work hard to get this one – found at great depth after putting in lots of hours finding only modern coins. I was surprised how nicely it cleaned up as it was a green disc / lump when found. This was the second 1854 coin I found this year (the Danish 4 Skilling in slot #2 is an 1854 as well).
Link to original thread
* * *
7. Russian 2 Kopeks, 1859. Found in Finland.
Found in the same general area as the Swedish 1749 coin, but about 100 yards apart. I found this coin within minutes of arriving at the site for the first time. Encouraged by this, I then pounded it for days but only found a few modern coins (and an enormous amount of trash). Funny how it works sometimes..
Link to original thread
* * *
8. Finnish 10 penniä 1914 (Tsar Nikolai II). Found in Finland.
Not a very old coin, and the only 1900’s coin to make the top 12, but it's my first of this type and gets bonus points for its condition as well.
I was really happy to see how nicely it cleaned up. Found in August.
Link to original thread
* * *
9. Danish 16 Skilling, 1814. Found in Denmark.
Condition could be better, but still a nice older coin – and a large one at that.
I can only get the details to show in a harsh angled picture like this – straight on it’s the perfect Oreo…
The date is readable, and is also confirmed by this coin being a one-year type.
Link to original thread
* * *
10. Danish 5 Öre, 1874. Found in Denmark.
Nice condition. This coin is somewhat tough in high grades as a non-dug coin.
Link to original thread
* * *
11. British Halfpenny, 1861. Found in Ireland.
Found at the edge of a very trashy sports field.
Link to original thread
* * *
12. Danish 2 Öre, 1874. Found in Denmark.
Not so much of a coin, but has a high coolness factor: I dug this one from under several inches of snow early in the year.
Link to original thread
Jewelry
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An excellent year!
11 gold rings (6 of which 18k). Most of these are from water hunting (anybody remember this post from August last year? )
I’m very glad I got that machine
The jewelry department also provided what I consider my best find ever:
Gold mourning ring dated 1725
The inscription reads: E.B.K. died on July 19, 1725.
I submitted it to the board of antiquities with detailed documentation. I was told that it's a good find, and that the national museum wants it for their collections. Following that, I was supposed to get forms where I can either claim a finder's fee or donate. Following a donation, I would have received an award and be invited to a year-end event at the museum.
As expected, they failed to follow their own procedure and I didn’t hear anything from them for five months. In the interest of maintaining contact and building a relationship, I called them a few days ago.
I was told that they are waiting for me to contact them about my decision (finder’s fee vs. donation). Hmm…. that’s not the way it should have been handled, but now they know I’m donating it and I should receive some sort of thank you note.
We shall see… I will post it on the forum if I get it.
Here are some links to my jewelry hunts this year:
Fighting the elements in January
(brr... I get cold all over again just looking at those pics)
The water hunting season was great fun!
Finding some gold at the edge of a trashy park
Relics
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Selected relics:
This Russian double headed eagle button is my favorite
Keys...
I don't know why I hold on to the keys I find - guess I'm a hopeless packrat..
Most of these are junk, but there are a few rarer ones in there too.
This one is my favorite
* * *
That is all!
Merry Christmas everyone and a happy and successful detecting year 2007!
-Z
Minelab: GPX 5000, Excalibur II, Explorer SE. White's: MXT, PI Pro
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Comments
<< <i>
I'd have soiled myself if I saw that come out of the ground. I'll bet it was a rush for you.
<< <i>
And this, well... this is worthy of any "Best Finds" grouping. If you frequent Treasurenet at all, that would probably be nominated for the elite "Best Of Treasurenet" category. (Only one of my finds, that Ming Medallion, was deemed worthy of that category).
Thanks for the "Year In Review" posting, and all your others- you are a large part of the spirit of this forum, and without you we wouldn't have much cool European stuff to look at. Even without that, your humor and photography and "critter pics" are all fun, and I hope you'll stick around and give us more good reads. May 2007 bring some amazing finds for you, Zot, and for all of us!
<< <i>I guess the 1800’s is an “old coin” threshold for me that gets me excited >>
Indeed! It's definately a major rush.
I'm with LM, your mourning ring is a stellar find to say the least.
2006 was very kind to me and several others around here.
Hmmm...
I may have to put together a best of 2006 poll of all our catagory winners.
Then make up special plaques to go to our winners.......
Thanks for all the geat rides along the way Zot!
Cheers!
Gary
And once the final count is in, I think we will finally see you blew me away in the gold
category!
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