Recent Wheatfield Highlight Finds Including Two Whatzits

[GB_Amateur]

For my end-of-the-year rush I'm concentrating on my (by far) best current site, what I've been calling "The Wheatfield" because of how many Wheat Cents it's produced (relative to my other sites).  Equinox w/11" coil in Park 1, Recovery Speed = 4; Iron Bias F2 = 0, gain = 24.  I start with a photo and go into detail from there:

The cruddy looking 35% silver 'Warnick' was a surprise when I got home and cleaned up my 'modern' coins.  Around here Warnicks tend to reveal themselves immediately because the chemicals in the ground clean them up to look more/less like other silver coins (well, not quite as pretty as the quarter shown).  Even after gently washing in water this one is butt ugly.  1943-P (most common of all the Warnicks) and fairly well warn, too.  Still, almost 80% as much silver as a 90% silver dime.

The 1952 plain (= Philadelphia minted) Washington quarter is only my second quarter this year (other one also from the Wheatfield, but it was an 1895-S Barber) was about 6" deep and showed jumpy dTID with high value (centroid ~31 which is where air tests would put it, but plenty of high 20's and low 30's as well when in the ground).  Although I hoped for a silver coin, no way did I count on it being even a good find as I've probably hit many 10's of targets with dTID's in this range that turned out to be worthless.  (Thumbtacks are the cleanest and most promising signals!).

The ring is marked 'sterling' and looks to be either a child's size or maybe for a woman's pinkie.  I don't know what that is right below it but I'm thinking it might be made of aluminum alloy.  It is brittle, bent, and broken but quite decorative.  The remaining two items are my 'whatzits?' that I hope someone here will recognize/identify.  The small item with a bird is anodized aluminum alloy (dyed to look like gold).  I did an Archimedes method specific gravity determination.  It has a central post and a flat disk back similar in size to the front.   It must be made to fit into a buttonhole type of opening, but looks too small to be a cufflink.  Possibly a lapel pin.  Could it be for display in either a cap or a over-the-breastpocket ribbon sash (e.g. military)?  Anyone recognize the emblem?  Could it be something worn by an airplane pilot?  It has no printing whatsoever.  Most surprising was its signal.  I got a 19-20 (zinc penny dTID and still only 20 in an air test), moderately weak but clear.  It was a full 7" deep.  Maybe the double disk combined with the connecting shaft led to its decent strength signal and high dTID as I  wouldn't expect a single disk of Al this size to even sound off in my soil at this depth.

Lastly is the device on the right.  Its base metal is a copper alloy and it's been thickly plated (chromium or nickel alloy?).  There is the fraction '3/4' embossed in the central shaft.  The two arms hold iron or iron alloy pins with what appears to be ceramic or hard plastic upper caps (one is missing).  The lower, flared part is hollow and threaded to be screwed onto something.  I wonder if its use involved some kind of magnetic attraction, explaining the two iron pieces.

If anyone can help identify those, I'll be greatly appreciative.

[GotAU?]

38 minutes ago, GB_Amateur said:

For my end-of-the-year rush I'm concentrating on my (by far) best current site, what I've been calling "The Wheatfield" because of how many Wheat Cents it's produced (relative to my other sites).  Equinox w/11" coil in Park 1, Recovery Speed = 4; Iron Bias F2 = 0, gain = 24.  I start with a photo and go into detail from there:

The cruddy looking 35% silver 'Warnick' was a surprise when I got home and cleaned up my 'modern' coins.  Around here Warnicks tend to reveal themselves immediately because the chemicals in the ground clean them up to look more/less like other silver coins (well, not quite as pretty as the quarter shown).  Even after gently washing in water this one is butt ugly.  1943-P (most common of all the Warnicks) and fairly well warn, too.  Still, almost 80% as much silver as a 90% silver dime.

The 1952 plain (= Philadelphia minted) Washington quarter is only my second quarter this year (other one also from the Wheatfield, but it was an 1895-S Barber) was about 6" deep and showed jumpy dTID with high value (centroid ~31 which is where air tests would put it, but plenty of high 20's and low 30's as well when in the ground).  Although I hoped for a silver coin, no way did I count on it being even a good find as I've probably hit many 10's of targets with dTID's in this range that turned out to be worthless.  (Thumbtacks are the cleanest and most promising signals!).

The ring is marked 'sterling' and looks to be either a child's size or maybe for a woman's pinkie.  I don't know what that is right below it but I'm thinking it might be made of aluminum alloy.  It is brittle, bent, and broken but quite decorative.  The remaining two items are my 'whatzits?' that I hope someone here will recognize/identify.  The small item with a bird is anodized aluminum alloy (dyed to look like gold).  I did an Archimedes method specific gravity determination.  It has a central post and a flat disk back similar in size to the front.   It must be made to fit into a buttonhole type of opening, but looks too small to be a cufflink.  Possibly a lapel pin.  Could it be for display in either a cap or a over-the-breastpocket ribbon sash (e.g. military)?  Anyone recognize the emblem?  Could it be something worn by an airplane pilot?  It has no printing whatsoever.  Most surprising was its signal.  I got a 19-20 (zinc penny dTID and still only 20 in an air test), moderately weak but clear.  It was a full 7" deep.  Maybe the double disk combined with the connecting shaft led to its decent strength signal and high dTID as I  wouldn't expect a single disk of Al this size to even sound off in my soil at this depth.

Lastly is the device on the right.  Its base metal is a copper alloy and it's been thickly plated (chromium or nickel alloy?).  There is the fraction '3/4' embossed in the central shaft.  The two arms hold iron or iron alloy pins with what appears to be ceramic or hard plastic upper caps (one is missing).  The lower, flared part is hollow and threaded to be screwed onto something.  I wonder if its use involved some kind of magnetic attraction, explaining the two iron pieces.

If anyone can help identify those, I'll be greatly appreciative.

If it’s a real one, that bird button may be very special, especially to the original owner - it looks like the same item being sold on eBay labeled as “World War II ruptured duck honorable service medal”

It’s funny why they called it a ruptured duck -https://www.medalsofamerica.com/blog/ruptured-duck-honorable-discharge-lapel-pin/

I found this rather easily using Google lens, it’s an app that lets you look online using an image. Try it out sometime, it works really well for identifying things like that, but it couldn’t identify that Y-shaped tool. The closest it could get was a meter key of some sort.

[F350Platinum]

Nice finds GB. 👍

GotAU pretty much nailed it with Lens.

Looks like you might have some early 20th century mixed in with your mid, the small band of metal may be much older. I'm surprised your ground was worse to your war nickel than the two I dug recently.

[NCtoad]

Nice finds, congrats!

[Valens Legacy]

Nice finds again for you, if I can find something that matches the item on the left in one of my grandfathers old books I will let you know.

Good luck on your next hunt.

[PimentoUK]

"Right below it .. but I'm thinking it might be made of aluminum alloy. It is brittle, bent, and broken but quite decorative"

I think it's silver, possibly a decorative band around a walking cane, probably 1800's vintage. Try the "spit & foil" test on it to see.

( For those who don't know: Spit on the silver item, apply a piece of aluminum/aluminium foil, and use a tiny bit of light rubbing to get the two metals in contact. You should get some fizzing/bubbling, and a foul 'rotten egg' sulphur/sulfur smell. The silver will shine-up, as the black salts are removed. This technique can also be used to clean up the item, as it will selectively clean the high-points, leaving the dark patina in the recesses. )

[strick]

Nice work...liking that pin..the V shape thing seems like a stop/wedge of sorts?

strick

[GB_Amateur]

15 hours ago, GotAU? said:

If it’s a real one, that bird button may be very special, especially to the original owner - it looks like the same item being sold on eBay labeled as “World War II ruptured duck honorable service medal”

It’s funny why they called it a ruptured duck....

Nailed it!  Thanks for ID'ing it.  Here's the Wikipedia entry.  Reproductions are for sale all over the internet, including on Amazon.  Mine is definitely anodized aluminum.  It also has more detail than most of the current reproductions, with, for example, horizontal bars in the field of the enclosed arc above the Eagle.  I don't know if mine is original and from the right period (1939-46) or possibly the first 10 years afterward.  Here are a couple interesting snippets from the Wikipedia page:

The award served several purposes. It served as proof that the wearer was an honorably discharged veteran returning from duty. Unofficially, it was also used as an identifier to railroad, bus, and other transportation companies who offered free or subsidized transportation to returning veterans.

Some veterans wore the pin on their civilian lapels for many years after the end of the war.

Given I had father, father-in-law, and two uncles who served in WWII I'm surprised neither I nor my wife remembers ever seeing one.  I wonder if they actually handed them out to every honorably discharged veteran of that time period or only some.  It was basically a way to allow the military uniform to be worn for a short time after discharge (which was otherwise illegal).

Based upon the quality, patina, wear, and depth found I think mine was an early one, likely lost in the first 15 years after the end of the war.  The Wheatfield was an industrial site for the first ~3/4 of the 20th Century before it became a park in the mid-70's.  So likely worn by a proud veteran on the job until it popped off and lay lost and buried for over 60 years.

[Tometusns]

Cool finds GB!

[Cal_Cobra]

Looks like you're onto a good site, I like the World War II ruptured duck honorable service medal!