Garrett Searcher Summer Edition

[Steve Herschbach]

25 color pages of great metal detecting finds. Check it out!

 

Ready for download at http://www.garrett.com/hobbysite/searcher_pdf/3500069_Summer_2015_72.pdf

[Reno Chris]

So I was looking through at the finds - and I was kind of chuckling that most of the finds pictured are not worth even $100, many not worth $50. There are some more valuable ones though and some worth maybe up to $500 or a little more. Then I saw one coin that I am familiar with (though I obviously don't own one) - the 1792 half disme. Now that was an amazing find! It looks to be in something like fine condition, and to be honest is probably worth more than all the other finds shown in that issue of the searcher combined. In a grade of fine, my coin book values this coin at a retail price of $40,000.

For those not familiar with the history of US coinage, the first real, official coins made for circulation were minted by the US government mint facility in 1793. However for years the congress had wanted the US to make its own coinage, but there was a matter of money and some decisions to be made. discussions and arrangements went on for years. Some wanted to put the sitting president on all coins made, but Washington was against this. Eventually they decided the coins should bear a depiction of "Miss Liberty" - and the politicians were able to agree on this (all US coins before 1909 feature some version of Miss Liberty - this changed with the first politician on a coin, Abraham Lincoln on the cent in 1909). By 1792, things were moving forward and some initial test coins were made late in the year. Only one of these initial test coins was actually put into circulation for the public - the 1792 half disme (before we had nickels, the five cent piece was a half dime, and was spelled disme). An old story says that the silver used to mint these coins came from melted silverware donated from his home by George Washington, and the female version of Miss Liberty on the front of the coin was modeled after Martha Washington - though there is no actual documentation of this. For more on the famous 1792 half disme, see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1792_half_disme

[LipCa]

good finds for everyone.

(I have one of those 1886 $5 gold pieces too.)

[tvanwho]

But my coin dealer told me that rare American coins are often counterfeits from the Chinese, even Civil war relics like belt buckles and God Forbid, gold and silver recent date coinage from the US . He told me the only safe coins to invest in are 1964 and before silver coins ,the ones considered to be scrap silver with no numismatic value. He showed me an 1856 Flying Eagle penny that should be worth thousands of dollars but he said it was counterfeit. I sure could not tell , looked real to me?

[Reno Chris]

All I can say is that if you dig some old coin at a site that's been occupied for a couple hundred years, its unlikely to be a counterfeit that some guy buried recently. However, counterfeits do exist, and if you are going to buy an expensive coin and you don't know much about coins, you should stick with certified coins authenticated by some independent outfit like PCGS (See http://www.pcgs.com/services/ )

If the finder of a coin like that 1792 half disme wants to sell it, it should be certified first.

[goldbrick]

Steve, thanks for the link. I enjoy seeing what others find with their detectors.

Chris, although a lot of those finds may not be worth a lot in cold hard cash, I would venture a guess each item is loved by the finder. Some things in life you can not put a price tag on.

[auminesweeper]

Nice

john

[strick]

Steve, thanks for the link. I enjoy seeing what others find with their detectors.

Chris, although a lot of those finds may not be worth a lot in cold hard cash, I would venture a guess each item is loved by the finder. Some things in life you can not put a price tag on.

 

Good point. I can easily do a couple ounces a day by staying home and working...but it's more fun to go to the mountains or desert and dig a $50 gold nugget...

 

strick

[bado1]

Steve, thanks for the link. I enjoy seeing what others find with their detectors.

Chris, although a lot of those finds may not be worth a lot in cold hard cash, I would venture a guess each item is loved by the finder. Some things in life you can not put a price tag on.

Well said.