Treasure Hunting

I just received Kellyco Metal Detector’s latest newsletter in my inbox today that really caught my eye. Here’s the jist: Kellyco’s 4 for 4 Day Sale includes four metal detectors: The MP5 Pro, Fisher ID Edge, White’s Classic 4, and Titan 2000 at insane price cuts. For instance the Fisher ID Edge which retails for $799.95 (not to mention $369.65 in accessories) is only $349.95!

This has to be one of the best sales I have seen Kellyco push out with over 70% reduced prices. Four days is plenty of time to decide which detector is best for your needs, I suggest taking a look for yourselves as this is a “once in a blue moon” of offers.

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This is yet another story from the UK, where a metal detector hobbyist stumbled upon a treasure of a lifetime. Keith Bennett was using his metal detector on a Stratford farm owner’s field when his metal detector suddenly alerted him of a strong signal. This strong signal turned out to be over 1,400 Roman coins (or Denarii as they were called back in the day) dating back between 2006 BC to 195 BC! The coins have already been deemed “authentic treasure” which is good in case someone was trying to play a big practical joke on Mr. Bennett.

Apparently, the silver Roman coins were stashed in a large pot (4 feet deep) that was broken on the top half. It seems that the pot had been struck when the field was being plowed, causing a few coins to be scattered around the pot. Since this was a rather large collection of coins, it is possible that they could be tied to a wealthy land owner back in Emperor Augustus (or perhaps earlier) reign.

Even though this treasure is expected to bring in tens and thousands of pounds, and Mr. Bennett supposedly allowed to keep half; I can only imagine the sensation of coming across such a historic find. As you can imagine he was quite stunned as you can reflect from his words:

“I just had an incredible feeling of history and going back in time. I felt a sense of connection with the person who buried these coins all those years ago. I wondered who they were and why they didn’t come back for it. It was brilliant – an experience everyone should have.”

Congratulations Mr. Bennett on such a stellar find, we hope that you find much more to come in your days of treasure hunting! Below are photographs of the Roman coins, check them out to get a feel for how old they are.

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Ironically this gold pendant (the size of a stamp) was found by a amateur metal detectorist only a few inches below the soil. This pendant is estimated to be dated from around the 15th century. It depicts the Holy Trinity and is in remarkable condition. What truly amazes me is that the pendant survived the weather and erosion for so long un-preserved.

Because this piece remains in such good shape, it is estimated to be worth up to $250,000. It is funny to think that the detectorist had no idea of the value of the find. Imagine if they sold this piece to a local pawnshop. This just goes to show that you don’t need fancy metal detectors that can detect 6 meters deep to find truly astonishing treasure.

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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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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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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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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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The Guatrain is a long railway project being constructed in South Africa. Supposedly there is a story milling about today *wink wink* how there has been a large find of gold coins that have halted the project all together. This is a 25 Billion dollar project that employs around 63k jobs, imagine all of that halted for a treasure discovery.

Construction of the Gautrain in Johannesburg has been halted for six months after workers found a large quantity of gold coins minted between 1892 and 1898 at the construction site in Rosebank. Excited historians believe the coins could be the missing Kruger millions.

Historians pointed out that they will need to further comb the area for any additional coins or other clues. Work on the Gautrain will be suspended from today.

Source: SABCNews

So what do you think? Real or someone is pulling our chain with this story on April Fools Day?

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Kellyco Metal Detector Superstore is now offering for a limited time excellent museum quality authentic reproductions of a treasure coin. The coin is offered exclusively with select metal detectors so keep your eye out for this deal. This coin is a replica of one that was salvaged from one of the Spanish Treasure Fleet ships that sunk off the east coast of Florida during a hurricane in 1715.

A little background about the coin can be traced back to the 1715 Treasure Fleet. It was returning from the New World back to Spain and was holding silver known as the “1715 plata treasure fleet.” These overloaded galleons were so heavy with treasure that steering through the storm was nearly impossible. Most were brought to shore by the tall waves and strong winds and smashed apart off the coast of Florida. Over one thousand sailors lost their lives to the storm that took the mighty galleons. The silver coins were spread across the floor and even though famous treasure hunters like Mel Fisher and Kip Wagner salvaged many of the spoils, there is still much more that has yet to be discovered.

Back to the coin in more detail… it’s a full size piece of 8 with decent strikes on both sides of the coin. The “Cross” is full with excellent interior reliefs. The shield side contains most of the shield plus assayers mark and a few letters on the rim. What a great deal! Also, it comes with a historical certificate if you want to mount it up on the wall or keep as a collectors item.

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I came across this while surfing the news. Workers who were digging a drain found 62 silver coins buried in the ground. The coins have initially been identified as 13th century Arab coins from the Delhi Sultanate era, from 1206 to 1526.

The workers who discovered them didn’t report the find to authorities… at first. They divided them up amongst themselves, but apparently some were not happy with their share and reported the find to authorities. The coins were confiscated and a team from the Archeological Survey of India is expected in the area today to examine the coins.

You can read the article here at: news.cn

This is an awesome find. I’m sad but not surprised that the coins were not reported at first, but I’m glad they were recovered. It’s another link to the history of the region and that’s priceless. I admit I get a thrill whenever I dig up a find, but anything of historical significance shouldn’t be hidden away, it should be shared with the world. How else will we learn about our past?

Liz

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