Treasure Hunting

Ever wanted to be like McGyver and construct your very own metal detector out of a spoon, your pocketknife, and a rubber band? Well look no further! I found this interesting site = Wonderhowto.com which shows you several ways to “Hack a Metal Detector.” It seems you can turn just about anything into a metal detector after watching some of these videos. For instance I had no idea that a calculator, radio, and even my cellphone could be capable of such things! I’m sure the strength of these so called “modern” metal detectors are weak and probably won’t find you treasure. Who knows though, they may just save you in a survival situation or give you some amusement as you locate your keys under the sofa.

If you are up for a challenge and get one of these homebrew mods to work, send it into our flickr photos or just comment back!

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The widely anticipated expansion to Google Maps “street view” is coming out soon, and will allow users to view images in 360 degrees over the computer. The first trail mapped is Monterey Rec Trail, which from Google’s street view looks stunningly vivid and beautiful. The whole plan is to map out places that aren’t accessible by just cars, giving users the ability to scope out locations or even get some extra bearing if lost.

Google will also be taking snap shots of trails all over the world as we speak and more trails are bound to show up in the near future. Look out for trails in California, Italy and the United Kingdom. As the article suggests, I feel like this may bring a lot more people outdoors. I think sometimes we get so caught up with work and everyday chores that we forget to get out and experience nature for its wonder. If people can see for themselves how amazing some of these locations are, they may decide to go for a hike instead of going to the movies over the weekend.

For you Metal Detectorists out there, anyone planning on using Google trail view to help hunt down some treasure? Let us know.

Try it out for yourself:

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Spain wants back its sunken treasure that was found by an American salvage team (Odyssey Marine Exploration.) and they mean business. In 2007, the US based diving company salvaged 500,000 silver and gold coins from the Strait of Gibraltar. Spain testifies that the warship Mercedes belongs to Spain meaning everything inside is rightfully theirs. A judge based out of Tampa, FL apparently agrees with Spain, making the ruling that the rightful owners of the treasure is Spain.

Spain’s representative went on to elaborate that people should “respect the resting place of sailors who died at sea.” He also went on to say that the Mercedes is the Spanish equivalent of the USS Arizona which was sunk in Pearl Harbor, questioning the morality of it being “OK” for another country to strip the site.

This case will ultimately determine the future of underwater claims. The UN is making drafts now that would make it illegal to commercially exploit vessels, artifacts, and human remains that were continuously underwater for 100 days or more. If this ruling passes the treasures will become “underwater cultural heritage,” meaning the country’s owners are the only people that can salvage the claim.

My thoughts are two fold, one part agreeing that there should be some restrictions on where and what can be salvaged for commercial exploitation. The other part of me thinks of all of the hard work, time, and money that goes into these salvage operations. They do all of the work of finding a wreckage just to have it taken from them. Where can the line be drawn between the two?

Image from REUTERS/Anton Meres

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I have to admit I wasn’t aware that nudity and treasure hunting go hand in hand. Council committee leaders in Mount Pleasant S.C. apparently want to put a stop to feeding the birds, treasure hunting, and strolling in the nude at their new park near Charleston. Although I’m sure that the city officials don’t assume that people will be metal detecting naked; you can rest assure with such a blanket ban on activities that this park will be missing out on the fun.

My question is how do they expect to keep birds out of an outdoor park? Granted feeding the birds can create concentrated “aerial bombing” but really? Hopefully the people and council can weed out some of these silly rules, and reconsider metal detecting as a park friendly hobby.

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A man by the name of Terry Hughes unearthed a gold nugget the size of an egg (8.7 ounces) that is estimated to be worth over $10,000. Speculators suggest that this is the largest gold nugget to be found at the Californian desert near Randsburg.

Terry was using his metal detector over the memorial weekend and after making one last pass by himself he struck his prize. Gold of this size is very rare, almost as rare as winning the lottery; to Mr. Hughes it isn’t about the money. For him its about finding treasure, the thrill of the hunt if you will. He goes on to say that once you find your first gold piece, you get gold fever and want to do it more. And even though Hughes has received estimations of around $20,000 USD for his nugget, he doesn’t want to sell.

I think that’s a real testament right there, I mean what would you do if you were in his shoes? Is it about the money or treasure hunting itself?

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Hi all, Mark here and I just got back from my honeymoon recently so bare with me if I seem out of the loop on things. The first thing I want to mention is something I received in my in-box today.

So, without further adieu I present the news: Kellyco Metal Detectors is offering the largest 1st Gen Minelab X-Terra Metal Detector 30, 50, and 70 Sale in history. Kellyco is a long standing sponsor of Treasure Hunting.com and we would like everyone to know about the great deal over there.

These are incredibly low prices (up to 67% off) if you are looking to save some extra cash, and the packages included can’t be found anywhere else. But hey, don’t take my word for it… check it out for yourself.

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Imagine being out with your metal detector and finding a most rare find by accident. If you were staring into the glinting gold in your hands, I can bet that you would be screaming and jumping for joy. That’s what local amateur detectorist Benny Pennerup most likely did as he stumbled upon 1,000 year old Islamic coins, silver jewelry.

The area where Mr. Pennerup found the treasure cache was said to be in an ordinary rural field! This field is located in Funen, Denmark’s third largest island. Local archaeologists from the Odense City Museum were called out to help with the dig. They found 41 silver coins, a silver bracelet and half of a highly decorative Thor’s Hammer. The coins are said to have originated from the ancient times of the caliphs, while others are from the area around present day Russia. “source:”

The museum has clearly stated that this is the largest historical coin finds in the history of Funen. They believe that these coins were most likely traded or acquired by Vikings, given the time frame (1,000 years ago.) Benny Pennerup is expected to receive compensation for his find and will be recognized by the National Museum. I can honestly say that is one of my dreams, which is to find something of such historical significance. Personally, it would not be about money or fame, but about the actual thrill of the find for myself.

The Copenhagen Post

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A California man by the name of Nathan Smith attempted to hunt for treasure on a Texas land owner’s property. The wreckage supposedly contains abandoned gold and silver, as identified by Smith’s metal detector. The treasure hunter claimed to have found a “19th century ancient shipwreck” near the Mission River outside of Houston, Texas.

The interesting thing is, Mr. Smith got the idea of treasure hunting by watching the movie National Treasure with Nicholas Cage. His goal was to finance his music and film career by hitting the jackpot. The jackpot in this case was the once famous Barkentine vessel that was lost in an 1822 hurricane over South Texas.

So how did he find the spot for this lost treasure? Google Earth! Yes, the free to download Google application was responsible for helping Smith locate the apparent shipwreck. He is said to have checked up on the location using Google Earth, everyday to monitor its changes. The spot apparently had a “shoe print” design and bared the resemblance of a boat.

The U.S. District Judge (David Hittner) in the court case had this to say in a report:
“Smith has received no artifacts, and presents no evidence, other than his own testimony regarding metal detector readings, that anything of value or historical significance actually exists where he claims it exists.”

So interesting enough, the case was ruled against Mr. Smith for not having enough evidence to support his claim. Nathan Smith plans on applying the Maritime Law “finds” and “salvage” to go back to the site. His goal is to use more powerful equipment and find solid evidence to back his claim. So what are your opinions in this case?

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Kellyco Metal Detectors is now exclusively selling the Golden King Detector in the US! For those of you not familiar of the Golden King Detector, it is made by Nokta Engineering. Nokta Engineering for years, has been developing and producing products for the military, civil, and technical systems around the world.

By all accounts this machine looks to be the most advanced, powerful, and innovative system I have seen in a very long time. What really made my ears perk up was this quote from Kellyco’s page:

“this is the ONLY system in the world to process images of targets in REAL-TIME as you they are discovered.”

Finally! A system that can graphically represent what you are detecting in real-time. This is the future people, and its all uphill from here.

Let’s take a little look at the specs:

*Processor: ARM9 Micro-Processor (a company of Microsoft, ARM processors are used in high end technology today.)

*Ram: 128MB RAM. Ok, this thing has RAM too for faster processing? Sounds like a mobile computer-metal detecting powerhouse!

*Operating System: LINUX. Yes, its true. The Golden King Detector has its own operating system!

*Monitor Screen: 7″ TFT Color Screen. What can I say here, a color screen with enough room to see what you are doing… excellent!

*Battery: Lithium-Ion Battery

*3D-Result Function: Deep Processing Radar technology that allows you to process signals in 3D in real time.

*Detecting Depth: 8 Meters. That’s over 26 feet in which the Golden King Processor Radar Plus can detect and analyze signals!

*Menu with interactive signs and symbols: This sounds like a really cool idea, you can find symbols of historical importance using the Golden King and find out what they are without a book or computer.

*Other notes: This system is capable of detecting both metal and non-metal objects. I know a lot of people that have lost items that contained no metal. This feature is huge and will attract many people I think.

Well that about sums up the important stuff. Again, if you want more information go check out Kellyco’s page here. In all we are looking at a very powerful machine that is capable searching and real time processing out on the field. The Golden King Deep Processor Radar is practically a computer and will revolutionize the way we metal detect in the future. Stay tuned for more info about this product, I’m sure there will be more to come.

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Hi all! I just wanted to give a shout out to Garrett Metal Detectors. We can be rest assured that the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games will be much safer now. According to the Vancouver Organizing Committee Garrett Metal detectors will be providing 1,650 metal detection products (550 walk through and 1,100 hand-held security detectors.)

Garrett has provided metal detectors for the Olympics since 1984 in Los Angeles, this was sparked by the tragedy of the 1972 Munich Games which created an intense movement for increased security at the Olympics. Garrett Metal Detectors were able to create the MagnaScanner, the company’s first walk-through metal detector. In comparison to today’s figures, they supplied 60 walk-through detectors and 1,000 of Garrett’s Pocket Probe hand-held detectors, as well as training. Source: www.Garrett.com

Garrett will also be the exclusive supplier of metal detectors for London 2012. Garrett Metal Detectors has supplied for the following Olympics as well: Seoul 1988, Barcelona 1992, Atalanta 1996, Nagano 1998, Sydney 2000, Salt Lake City 2002, Athens 2004, Torino 2006.

I think its great that we can look back and see the great things metal detectors do for us. Unfortunately, this is a world in which we have to protect ourselves from harsh realities of terrorism and threat. These devices help us wash away those fears during the games, and focus on the games themselves which promote peace and equality of man. Thank you Garrett for making the world that much safer for us, and helping promote safety around the world.

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