March2006

Metal detecting holidays in England with the World's most successful metal detecting club.

Twinned with Midwest Historical Research Society USA

March 2006 Finds

Georgian fob seal

Fascinating 13thC seal matrix that appears to have a man and a woman people facing each other with a heart in the middle		1475 Dutch -Karel de Stoute -silver DOUBLE STUIVER

1582 Elizabeth 1st hammered silver sixpence		1605 James 1st half groat ( 2 pence)

Georgian watch winders		18thC Dutch lead bale seal with Lion and crest design	Medieval mount with animalface

18thC bayonet frog		Very unusual 18thC bayonet frog design

Silver decanter decoration Post 1740		Edward 1st hammered silver penny- class 7a Canterbury mint

Celtic serpent brooch	Possible Roman silver ring fragment with emperors bust	18thC silver decorated thimble	Pre 1840 Navy button

Saxon period hanger - skull and crossed arms		Geometric button	Interesting animal head design watch winder

1561 Elizabeth 1st hammered silver threepence 19.62 mm smaller flan type		1500's Elizabeth 1st hammered silver groat fragment

Georgian spoon	Post Medieval buckle	Medieval buckle	16thC German jetton

18thC Colchester half penny		1834 William IIII milled silver sixpence

Ship button	Early medieval skull mount	17thC hammered copper trade farthing	Livery button

1864 Victorian milled silver sixpence		Early coin weight possibly Roman WR	15thC lead token - petal type

17thC Jetton		15thC lead token - long cross and pellet type	Percussion cap

17thC Jetton		18thC Silver spoon with only half of the hallmarks showing

Edwardian tea strainer		Coin weight - not researched it yet	16thC Elizabeth 1st hammered silver penny

1618 James 1st hammered silver penny		1578 Elizabeth 1st hammered silver sixpence

Medieval lead weight	1st C Roman fibula brooch - Colchester type		17thC sword hanger fragment

Roman key fragment		Post Medieval lead token

17thC clothing fastener		Georgian pastry edger	16thC cotal bell maker AG

17thC bronze cup type bullion weight	Medieval bronze pot leg	One peice 12th Regiment of foot officers button	Decorated belt guide

Interesting bronze trade weight - possibly Dutch	15thC lead token	Roman cart fitting	Fragement of a Roman knife handle

Post Medieval belt mount	1817 George III 'bullhead milled silver half crown ( 30 pence)

1864 Victorian milled silver sixpence		Post medieval spur buckle

1770's - 21 shillings (Guinea) coin weight	Medieval lead coin weight - cross design	Lead weight - circle design possibly Roman	Post medieval mount - heart shaped

18thC clog fastener	1778 Russian bale seal	1770's 4 shillings and 6 pence coin weight - written 4s6d	Georgian metal chess piece

16thC Elizabeth 1st hammered silver fragment		16thC Elizabeth 1st hammered silver fragment

1327 AD Edward III penny Canterbury mint		Stag livery button	Post 1840 Navy button

Very rare Henry IV 1399 - 1412 Heavy coinage Type F London mint hammered silver half groat

18thC pastry jigger	18thC Bayonet frog		Late Medieval mount

Edward III Treaty period 1361-1369 probably York mint - quatrefoil - with - pellet on reverse cross		1618 James 1st hammered silver half groat ( 2 pence)

1625 Charles 1st hammered copper rose farthing		23rd Regiment of foot one piece button	2nd Regiment of foot TM ?

Interesting hand decorated silver fragment		Silver love token with initials and heart inscription	Dragoon Guards button

50BC Gallo Belgic Celtic gold stater 6.24g - 16.58mm found by Ark Jack 'This'll be CCI 06.0190. Difficult to say exactly which class of uniface stater it is with this amount of wear - indeed it's quite unusual to see one which is this worn, it looks as though it knocked about a bit before being lost/deposited'.

'That's an antoninianus of Postumus - emperor of the Gallic Empire of Rome. The northern and western provinces split off on their own during the difficult and chaotic times in the 250's & 260's A.D. About the same time Valerian was being captured by the Persians - and subjected to various colorful humiliations - leaving his son Gallienus in sole charge of the empire, Postumus, who had been one of Gallienus' generals, was proclaimed emperor by his troops and found himself in a very favorable position of power. He therefore was the emperor of Spain, Gaul and Britain for almost a decade. His successors did not fare as well, and the Tetrici were eventually forced to abdicate in favor of Aurelian. Interestingly, the Gallic Empire seemed to be wealthier than the empire at Rome, the quality of the Gallic coins is higher, as is their general level of silver - Postumus and successors managed to coin better silver, then billon, than did Gallienus under whose reign the antoninianus fell from an approximately 50% silver coin to a tiny, miserable, silvery-washed copper piece - some of the worst may not even have been silver-washed. Your piece is the PAX AVG type and shows Pax standing left, holding an olive-branch and scepter. With obverse legend IMP C POSTVMVS PF AVG it could be either mint of Lugdunum or Cologne, according to RIC, but there are many authorities who question the attributions to one or the other mint (assigning them on the basis of style) - it's probably best to say that the origin of most of the Gallic coins is unclear at best'. Mark

Celtic quarter Morini boat tree 70 BC found by Dakota Dennis CCI 06.0187 1.45g, 11.61mm 'The G-B quarter is a lovely coin, looks very sharp. There is a distinctive class of these which have all the little crosses around the 'boat' - they're not uncommon, but not always as nice as this'.

50BC Trinovantes Celtic gold (Clacton type)1/4 stater - 1.13g, 13.71g CCI 06.0188 found by Dakota Lowell

2ndC Roman bronze disc brooch with gilding and enamel work		Solid gold Georgisn watch winder	15thC lead token

King Offa - 780 - 792 King of Mercia hammered silver .0.92g - 16.64mm

1593 Elizabeth 1st hammered silver sixpence		Silver handle 2.07g, 34.38mm L- reported to museum as potential treasure - Id'd as 18thC not treasure

??		1641 Tower mint - Charles 1st hammered silver half groat ( 2pence)

1836 William IIII milled silver four pence		18thC working toy cannon

18thC working toy cannon		Ipswich corporation button	64th Regiment French button

Pre 1840 Navy button	Ornate Georgian buckle	Heart attack find - gilded hollow ring - no great age	Medieval buckle fragment

Flying duck button	1696 William III milled silver love token		Georgian garter buckle

Annular buckle 1350 to 1650	18thC button	1696 William III milled silver love token	Medieval bromze pot pot

1817 George III milled silver sixpence		Henry VI 1422-7 Annulet issue - Calais mint hammered silver half groat

1815 Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher (1742-1819), Prussian Field Marshal The Battle of Waterloo, 1815 commemorative coin - great find		Amazing condition 1652 Charles II copper penny

Stags head livery button	Livery button	Post 1740 silver button	Post medieval bronze ring

Smallest coin ever found here 'Model Eight farthing' 1848 ??? 0.29g, 8.4mm		Christ	Bird button

Huge Roman Sestertius 19.11g, 31.1 mm 'A little tough to be sure from the images, but I believe that's Faustina II, the wife of Marcus Aurelius. If you rotate the obverse image 90 degrees clockwise, you see the characteristic hair-bun at the back of her neck. also, what's visible of the legend is probably: FA [VST] INA AVGVS [TA]. I can't really tell who the personification on the reverse might be. She was married to M. Aurelius in 145 A.D. and died in 175 A.D., So if this isn't a "DIVA" posthmous type, and it doesn't seem to be the sort struck under Antoninus Pius, this would date to 161-175 A.D. I have never heard of "Memoriae Damnatio" on a coin of Faustina - but perhaps in Britain things were different? I'm thinking perhaps this might have something to do with the Antonine Wall? Or some campaign during the time of M. Aurelius that was very unpopular?' Mark		Military button - which country ?	Georgian watch winder with black star engraved stone ?

George III copper farthing in great shape	1700's 1/4 milled Spanish Reale silver coin		16thC decorated crotal bell with markers mark '2'

Superb Tudor period decorated 16thC button with a style not seen before here		That's Julia Domna, the wife of Septimius Severus and mother of Caracalla and Geta. The denarius reads IVLIA AVGVSTA on the obverse and DIANA LVCIFERA on the reverse which shows Diana standing left, crescent moon on her shoulders, holding a long torch diagonally with both hands. This is a product of the mint at Rome c. 196 A.D. - during the reign of her husband. RIC IV, I 548, RSC 27, SR ('88) 1835, VM 15. Although RIC rates it "scarce", I don't believe it's really any scarcer than most other relatively common types. Nice find! Mark

1815 German 1 pfennig		Interesting French Indochinese copper coin

1570 Elizabeth 1st hammered silver groat	1844 Victorian milled silver sixpence		Rolled over hammered silver coin in rough shape

1625 Charles 1st hammered silver penny		1946 George V milled silver sixpence

Early 18thC harness mount	19thC lead bale seal	WWII Iron cross	17thC lead token with heart design

1791 Russian lead bale seal		Copper alloy buckle 18thC

Medieval gilded decorated clasp - hinged possibly from a bible or small chest

Cast copper alloy double loop oval buckle c1500 -1650		20thC silver button	Post medieval belt mount

Roman bronze winged Phallus pendant 27.87 - 49.02mm L found by Cal Jeff

Hans Krauwinckel c1560- 1610 German Jetton		Parys Mine company 18thC token with a druid head. This was the face that launched a collecting mania and thousands of manufacturers, merchants and shopkeepers followed the lead.

James 1st hammered silver sixpence		1704 Louis XIIII milled silver

15thC open top thimble		15thC lead token	15thC lead token

Early one piece 30th Regiment of foot button	George IIII memorial medal		Huge crotal bell - maker William Carr c1680

Roman silver twisted ear wax scraper reported to museum as treasure		Britain be true to your King Trampling on Liberty lost the King 1830

Medieval heraldic shield mount	1830 Chinese coin	North Thames type Celtic gold stater 5.54g - 16.93 found by Cal Mark 'many thanks for this one, a rare one indeed. It's an example of VA 1509, also in the BM catalogue (BMC 350) and no. 34 in 'Coins of England'. It usually has a couple of S shapes on the obverse, although I can't see any traces of them here - the obverse is sometimes worn though. It seems to be a North Thames type, to judge from the few provenances available, but there are only six examples previously recorded so it is a rare type. I would guess quite early too, perhaps 40s BC. Certainly one of the best Celtic you've had so far, thanks! It'll be CCI 06.0195'.

1867 Victorian gold half Sovereign		1842 Victorian gold half Sovereign

1604 James 1st sixpence		1508 Henry VII hammered silver half groat - York Archb Bainbridge

1526- 44 Henry VIII 2nd Profile issue - London Mint Obverse shows reversed Roman D for C in HENRIC and in FRANC- Laker D hammered silver groat		1526- 44 Henry VIII 2nd coinage Laker E hammered silver groat

1570 Elizabeth 1st hammered silver half groat		1649 Commonwealth hammered silver half groat

1216AD Henry III cut half voided long cross hammered silver ( can't clean, huge stress crack )	1199 AD King John hammered silver half penny		17thC bell clapper

1509 Henry VIII hammered silver groat needs straightening to ID type		Roman bronze signet ring with initials XIX ROMAN LEGIONARY RING OF THE XIX LEGION (ONE OF THE LEGIONS OF THE VARUS DISASTER)

17thC decorated silver thimble reported as treasure - inscribed BB maker W		16thC Elizabeth 1st hammered silver penny

1819 George III milled silver sixpence		Solid gold Georgian watch winder	Pre 1840 Navy button

Tudor period snake clasp		18thC toy cannon

18thC silver medallion	Huge decorated Copper alloy signet ring - needs careful cleaning - don't get a feel of the date yet		1696 William III over stamped love token

1819 George III milled silver sixpence		1679 Charles II milled 3 pence

1842 Victorian gold half Sovereign found by Boston Beau		1569 Elizabeth 1st hammered silver sixpence - 24.10mm

Georgian fob seal with woman in relief looking right

1509 - 26 Henry VIII first coinage 'Sovereign type' hammered silver penny		1307 Edward II Medieval penny class 11C London mint- back from the straighteners

Excellent 35th Regiment of foot officers button - one peice	1696 William III milled silver love token	1816 George III milled silver sixpence

Very unusual Tudor period c1500's button		Neat Post medieval buckle

1906 Edward VII milled silver sixpence		1834 William IIII milled silver sixpence

17thC knife handle guard	17thC decorated spoon bowl		London Veteren Reserve badge

Celtic Woad cosmetic grinder - boat shaped with suspension loop 14.5g - 45.12mm L x 9.88mm T found by Mass Linda

1723 George 1st SSC milled silver shilling - quite a rare find		Late Victorian 1897 milled silver shilling

What looked like a Roman debased silver - 3.16g 16.82mm ID That's a denarius of Faustina I, wife of Antoninus Pius whom she married during Hadrian's time. She died in 141 A.D. after giving birth to numerous children, including the future Faustina II, wife of Marcus Aurelius. This extensive posthumous series in her honor is mostly from 147 A.D. and later . Obv: DIVA FAVSTINA. Draped bust rightr. Rx: CONSECRATIO. Ceres standing left raising hand and holding torch. SR 4593, RIC 382b, RSC 165a. Mark Lehman

Victorian 1849 milled silver groat (4 pence)		1696 William III milled silver sixpence lovetoken

Unusual belt slide probably 18thC		Medieval buckle	19thC buckle

18thC Jews harp		1560-1 Elizabeth 1st hammered silver half groat - Martlet Mintmark

1356- 61 Edward III hammered silver half groat - Canterbury mint		17th/18th C spout

That one's easy - that's a Constantinopolis city-commemorative. When Constantine the Great moved his capitol from Rome to his newly-rebuilt city of Constantinople, there was a large series of parallel "Urbs Roma" (to help appease "jilted" Romans) and "Constantinopolis" coins issued from all mints. Originally issued around 330 in great quantities, then declining in size and numbers, they were revived after Constantine's death in 337 when the succession was somewhat in doubt - so that individual mints didn't have to declare for the various contenders. As small as your is, it probably dates to just before or sometime in the decade after Constantine's death. Your coin shows the allegorical personification of the city of Constantinople on the obverse, helmeted and with spear over shoulder and had the legend made it onto the undersized flan, would have read CONSTANTINOPOLIS. The reverse, anepigraphic but for the exergual mint mark, shows Victory on prow of a ship left. In your specimen, Victory holds an unusually prominent palm-branch (I think) - usually, she holds a spear and leans on a shield. Mark		What I can tell you, despite the lack of detail, is that this is a dupondius of Trajan, 98-117 A.D. Luckily, in the early 2nd century A.D. the Romans were still doing high-quality, representational work and Trajan's profile is unmistakeable. The denomination, "dupondius" (two asses) is indicated by the spiky, radiate crown of Sol - by this time, any coin displaying this sort of headgear can be assumed to be a double-denomination. particularly since the "S" of the obligatory "S - C" (Senatus Consultio - "by consent of the Senate" - an official and fondly held myth that the Senate still had any say in matters like the small-change supply at this point in the Imperium) virtually all imperial AE's carried seems to be in the correct position this way. I still can't quite make out who or what is being portrayed here, and since Trajan was around for quite a while - nearly 20 years - there are literally hundreds of possible reverse types for dupondii. A complete WAG might be Hilaritas, who is usually portrayed holding a long palm branch. Mark

1817 George III shilling		82nd Regiment of foot	16thC Tudor button

Post Medieval bale seal with shield and cross design		1808 Louis Napoleon, King of Holland - Netherlands East Indies 1/16th of a Guilder

Just cleaned up an earlier ring find by Bud Bing to reveal the initial 'Pvke' - possibly Roman from the area that produced the XIX legion ring

Army Ordeance ?	Medieval small chisel	Railway button	Georgian decorated oval buckle
Interesting piece 26.39mm L inscribed 'IVI' on reverse - needs more investigation

Roman bronze lynch pin	Roman bronze pin head	37th Regiment of foot	Medieval apothecary scoop

20th C lead soldier	2nd Regiment of foot	16thC button	14thC gold decorated ring brooch

'small-module follis of one of the members of the family of Constantine - and a perfect example of what I refer to as "Murphy's Law of Ancient Coin Legends" - the part that is most important, if there's any question who it is, will be the part that is missing. I can easily say who it isn't - it's neither Constans (wrong letter on the end) nor Constantius II (too early) - what I can read on the obverse is "...ONSTANTI.." but this could be either Constantine I or II. The reverse is the "SOLI INVICTO COMITI" type and shows radiate Sol standing left raising hand and holding a globe. It's from Lugdunum by the prominent "L" in the exergue (SLG, probably), and, looking in RIC, I see from the S - F fieldmarks that it's too early at 313-14 A.D.to be Constantine II.'		I am not going to be able to tell you who or where-from on this one - but your reverse image was upside-down again. It's a GLORIA EXERCITVS (Glory of the Armies) with 2 soldiers, holding spears in outer hands and resting inner hands on shields, flanking 2 legionary standards. The 2-standard type are the earlier form with this legend and date to 330-335 or so. Again, it's a member of the family of Constantine - could even be Constantine himself, but there doesn't appear to be any usable legend on the obverse of this one at all'. Mark

1st C BC/AD Roman La Tene fibula brooch	15th Regiment of foot officers one piece button	C1000 BC Bronze Age socketed implement fragment 35.57 mm L x 21.99 mm W

This time you have two unofficial coins. I've been trying to move away from the term "barbarous" in describing these because it's an outmoded and rather pejoritive term coined by elitists of an earlier age - as in "Barbarous Radiate" - when, in reality, the folks who made and used these coins were no more barbarous than those who made and used the coins they imitate. But whether you use the term "Contemporary Counterfeit", "Unofficial Imitative", "Ancient Forgery, or "Barbarous Radiate", that's what the first one is. I can't tell from your photo whether the radiate portrait is bearded or not, but the prototype for this coin would most likely have been an official, Gallic Empire antoninianus of Tetricus I or II - "Dad" being bearded, and "Junior", clean-shaven. At this size and weight, adequate for even an official coin of the era, it is unusual to see such crude and illiterate work - that usually appears on the smaller ones which didn't try nearly so hard to imitate the prototypes in general. Whether these were counterfeits made to decieve (seems unlikely dunnit? what with this level of workmanship), filled a general need for coin in an era of chaos when official coin was unavailable, were the equivalent of "Plantation Tokens" - scrip used in large Latifundia - farming estates - and/or were meant to be exchangeable for regal coin when it became available again - well, we just don't know. They might have filled any of these functions, all of them, or "none of the above". At any rate, the prototype for this specimen, as far as I can tell, was the SPES AVG type common to all the Gallic Emperors. This shows Spes - allegorical personification of "Hope" - advancing left, holding a flower and hitching the hem of her skirt. If the bust proves to be beardless, you can say it was copied (loosely) from Tetricus II, if bearded, it could copy, in about this order, Tetricus I, Victorinus, Postumus, or - far less likely - Laelianus or Marius, both of whom were extremely short-lived. The second, broken one is also probably unofficial. It's a bit harder with the coins of the Severans to be certain. The prototype, if it's not actually official, is a denarius of Septimius Severus dating to about 211 A.D. The coin, were it whole, should read "SEVERVS PIVS AVG" on the obverse and "P M TR P XVIII COS III PP" and shows Jupiter standing left, holding thunderbolt and scepter, between two children (Caracalla and Geta, presumably) - RIC 233, RSC 539. This one is a bit more problematic to tell whether or not it's official. You say it's AE, right? The Severan denarii underwent significant debasement so that some issues of even irrefutably official specimens may appear to be billon or even AE after millennia in the ground. There also exists a significant body of high-quality copies in AE, some lightly silvered, which seem to be unofficial. Since these have been appearing in larger numbers in recent years since the use of metal detectors has become commonplace, particularly in Eastern Europe, they have been - probably wrongly - conflated with the "Limes Falsa" lightweight, crude AE's in imitation of the AE types of the 1st and earlier 2nd centuries A.D. found along the "Limes" or borders of the Empire. The name "Limes Denarius", although a misnomer, has been applied to these so often that it has stuck. Here again, although we know that these AE denarii are more or less faithful copies of silver prototypes, and we know that they were both struck and cast in various places - we even have numerous molds and forgers' dies - we don't understand the role, if any, they may have played in the official monetary system. Were they copies made by semi-Romanized folks just outside the reach of empire? - folks who had become accustomed to the use of coin but who did not have access to official supplies? Were they a form of military scrip meant to keep large quantities of precious metal from falling into enemy hands in the event of a defeat - and presumably redeemable in good coin at some future date? Were they out-and-out counterfeits? Were they particularly debased official issues? (well, the cast ones probably weren't) Or did they fill some, as-yet unknown function? They might have done any or all of these at various times and places. Or, your coin might just be lower-grade silver and completely official. Mark

Celtic bronze coins sent to CCI for recording Right facing horse Addedomaros style 45 BC - Left facing horse like a Cunoblein 'Biga' type Early 1stC

Post Medieval small chisels/implements			16thC Tudor button

1865 - 3 Pfenninge German states Prussian coin		1836 William IIII milled silver 4 pence

19thC Knife Scabbard tip	88th Regiment of foot	18thC gilded decorated clog fastener

16th/17th C German Jetton	A fragment of a Romano-British protected loop terret. 28.5 mm L x 17.9 mm W

Complete hasp and clasp - Georgian		17thC pewter child's finger ring

Dress button	Livery button	Navy button	Georgian cuff link
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