Fugio Field: Willliam III halfpenny :biggrin: :rage:

[BlackX]

Went back to Fugio Field last night. I'm starting to grid an area next to the previous one. Hit a signal that was bouncing around all over but had some nice sound to it. I don't know what was going on in my head but I dug a too small hole, hit roots, and ended up gouging the hell out of a Wm. III halfpenny. Still feel sick about it. I haven't set up the new comp with the camera yet so no pics--but I'm not sure I'd post those nasty gouges anyhow.

And this coin, although very worn, was the cleanest LC I've ever pulled from the ground. It's so worn I can't get a date off of it but it would have been between 1695-1701.

I've now pulled 6 LCs from the ground there and none have been the same ones.
French
- double-tournois (mid-late 1600s)
- Louis XVI 12 deniers (1792?)
English
- William III (1695-1701)
- George II (1727-1760)
- George III (1760-1820)
U.S.
- Fugio (1787)
Considering the spread of where they're found, I'm starting to think they may have been buried and spread by plowing.

[edited to fix the Georges]

 

[Erik in NJ]

Rich, Some field you got there! I dug a James II crown coin (aka gun money - not a real coin since ol' James was kicked off the throne or banished I believe) from this same period when I was over in England and went out with a friend. I think it was 1698 - Jacobean era. Funny its quite common to dig George I, II and III coins over there - they don't consider a coin to be old until you get into the hammered coins, so don't sweat the gouge - unusual find in the US though...sounds like you've got yourself an interesting field there! Dig bigger plugs from now on as it sounds as though you never know what'll be found there....BTW, how deep was it?

 

[BlackX]

I'm real happy with that location even though I don't find much on most hunts on it. Since the first time I hit it and found 4 LCs in 20 minutes, I've been back a number of times. Although I dug the double tournois the 2nd(?) time (and thought it was a button), most trips since I've been doing good to find an early-1900s Indian Head. So I was actually quite surprised as to what was in the hole this time. It was getting to the point where I thought I wasn't going to find any more.

I was digging much bigger plugs after that--don't know why I dug that one so small. I usually only dig small for surface signals. Which, come to think of it, might have been part of why I ended up gouging it. The size of the coin probably made it read shallower than it was. Still no excuse, particularly in that location. Oh well, lesson learned. (I hope.)

All of them have been about 5-6" deep, IIRC.

One thing that's a lot of fun about this activity is all coins you've not heard of and all the other things you learn.

 

[Erik in NJ]

It's funny how some old coins are only an inch or two down while others are deep. I'd assume that all coins there could be old and dig appropriately. Best of luck there!

 

[Erik in NJ]

BTW, how many non-coin targets do you hit in this field and are you leaving or removing them? And is there any surface clad and are you removing them when you come across them? Regards, Erik