TreasureWriter » Treasures Found

Woman Becomes First Prosecuted For Failure to Report Treasure

Jeremy Harris — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 01:57:03 +0000

A woman in Ludlow, UK discovered a piedfort, a rare 14th century coin-like object, in her garden and failed to report it to authorities under the Treasure Act. She became the first person in the country to actually be prosecuted for this crime and was ordered to turn over the piedfort, given a conditional discharge, and ordered to pay £25 in court costs.

Read The Full Story -> http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/7326151/Woman-becomes-first-prosecuted-for-failing-to-report-treasure.html

Gold Coins for Salvation Army

Jeremy Harris — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 00:15:35 +0000

Christmas is the season of giving and lately, throughout the world, people have been more generous than ever. We have all passed the humble volunteers ringing a bell with a kettle in front of a department store and perhaps you were in the giving spirit and generously donated a few dollars. Some people, who remain anonymous, have been giving more — in the form of gold.

According to the Calgary Herald, a gold coin valued at $1200 was found in their Salvation Army kettle during processing of the day’s donations. Spokeswoman, Pam Goodyear, added that it, “is a wonderful surprise and a great donation”.

In Torrington, Connecticut an 1881 $5 Gold Eagle was anonymously dropped into a Salvation Army bucket and was discovered later when the automatic change counting machine routinely rejected it.

According to WGAL8 News in York, Pennsylvania, another good Samaritan dropped a gold South African Krugerrand wrapped in a $1 bill into the red kettle. The coin is valued at over $1200.

This series of gold coin donations is happening all over the country and there is almost too many instances to list. Is this an act of good faith by the world’s patrons or is this a publicity stunt created by the Salvation Army to encourage more donations? The folks over at MuseumOfHoaxes.com seem to think it may be a stunt, but even if it is I think everyone agrees that it is for a good cause and brings in more donations.

Golden Virginia Beach

Jeremy Harris — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:04:29 +0000

I wanted to show you all one of my favorite finds. This one came from when I was stationed in Norfolk, VA and would take frequent trips to Virginia Beach coinshooting and finding the odd bits of dropped jewelry.

It is a 14K solid gold necklace pendant with 3 diamonds in it. I was ecstatic when I saw it glimmer in my hand as I sifted through the white sand but knew that I had to keep my game face on because a little excitement is all you need to get a handful of people surrounding you wanting to see what you found. At that point, it can become a hassle so it is better to keep a straight face and play it cool.

I took it to a jeweler who tested the authenticity of the diamonds and he estimated it to be around 1/2 KT total between the three. He offered me $500 on the spot but I declined because I am a little weird and like to keep my treasures.

Hurricane Ida Stirs Up Treasure

Jeremy Harris — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 13:34:35 +0000

Wayne Argo of the Mason Dixon Treasure Club in Frankford Delaware has tapped into one of the best beach hunting strategies I know of. In the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, the beaches were left eroded and a lot of material had been shifted around leaving a wake of interesting debris that would put a twinkle in the eye of any beach-comber.

He knew these “shifted sands” would have dredged up treasures normally out of reach so him and many others combed Rehoboth Beach in Deleware with their metal detectors on Monday to find some goodies. He managed to find, among other treasures, a large cent, a British half-penny, and a 50 caliber bullet from WWI. He also confessed to finding gold and silver jewelry but didn’t provide any details.

The East Coast is notorious for large storms affectionately called nor’easters which twist and turn the sands uncovering valuables. If you are looking to do some beach hunting, wait until after a major storm and you most certainly won’t be disappointed!

(SOURCE) FoxNews DC by ROBY CHAVEZ

Iron Age Gold Neckbands Discovered

Jeremy Harris — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:24:12 +0000

David Booth, a chief game warden at Blair Drummond Safari Park, made the discovery of a lifetime five days after receiving his first metal detector. The 35-year-old Stirlingshire, Scotland native practiced using his new detector for a few hours in the kitchen and garden before heading out to a location where he had secured the land-owner’s permission.

Walking to the rear of his Jeep, Mr. Booth began swinging his detector on his way towards a field. The sound of a target rang out and what he unearthed is being heralded as one of Scotland’s most significant discoveries of Iron Age metalwork. Four gold neckbands, also referred to as torcs, came from the hole he dug and are thought to date between 300BC and 100BC.

Scotland law requires treasures to be reported to the Treasure Trove Unit at the National Museum of Scotland. The crown can claim any archaeological objects discovered and the finder retains no ownership rights. However, it is expected that Mr. Booth may still receive a reward for the discovery.

Moral of the story: You don’t have to be a professional treasure hunter with years of experience to find the good stuff. It’s possible to make the discovery of a lifetime within only seven steps of field experience.