1806 US $5 Gold Coin

For the Mormon people, that is a Life size Joseph Smith statue with my metal detector from today and here are some finds from the Mormon property including a lead heart. Home was built 1790-1810.

Sounds like the Hoxne hoard.

Remember, the fact that a coin is dated 1806 does not mean that it was dropped in 1806. It could have been dropped anywhere from 1806 to 2015.

Keep in mind that many great detector finds had no witnesses, and some did not even have pictures, but many were later confirmed by the finder bringing credible witnesses to the scene of the discovery. Also, ground recovery tends to alter the surface of a metal in uniquely identifiable ways - notably, mineral leeching - that can be verified by conservation companies such as NGC, and by some archaeologists and museums. Those people would be able to conclusively determine how long the coin was in the ground.

I would invite CCF to visit one of the large treasure forum sites and review some of the things that are found daily; an 1806 gold coin is definitely a good find but far from the best and it is not entirely uncommon to find gold. There have been many recoveries, mostly scarce colonials (think Pine Trees) and very rare Civil War items, that have been judged to be either priceless/museum pieces or with values in the 6+ figure range, way exceeding this 1806 half eagle.

There is little or no motivation to fake detector finds, because detecting tends to be a fairly insular hobby, for one, and second, because the circumstances behind the recovery often do not add any substantial value, with the exception of relic hunting, where battlefield recovery documentation is a must for provenance and maximum value. In the case of OP's coin, a fully documented, 30 minute long news report with live video of the hunt and the actual find would do exactly nothing to increase the find's value. Provenance is irrelevant in this case; especially when you consider that mentioning the coin is a ground recovery will likely DECREASE its numismatic value and/or result in a details grade.


I've been detecting since the late 80s and never found anything nearly this nice, but I can appreciate a good find as well as anyone. If OP has really faked this whole thing, that is unethical and violates the Detectorists' Code of Conduct as has been set forth for years by W&ET and other trade pubs and by detector manufacturers; it would be an embarrassment on our hobby as a whole, and I would expect the repercussions for the Outside Sales Rep at Kellyco involved in this case would be serious.

I may forward this thread on to one of the senior executives @ Kellyco, with permission, for their review and analysis, and to determine if their sales rep was in any way involved in some sort of collusion in an attempt to boost his commissioned sales by faking detector finds. However, Kellyco has a pretty strong good reputation within the hobby, and I am somewhat loath to jump to the conclusion that they would directly put their reputation (and sales) at such a risk by this sort of shilling and fraud.

This thread has at least inspired me to get off my hiney and go buy that Garrett AT Pro or White's MXT Pro I've been lusting over to replace my White's CoinMaster and well-used DI/Pro 5900SL.

UNC details is VERY generous in my opinion. That coin has a lot of wear.

paralyse , you can forward this anyone you would like to with my blessing. I abide by all the codes of ethics when it comes to MD'ing and basically anything in life for that matter. I did not include the entire certificate # until I have the coin back in my possession . The coin doesn't have a lot of wear that's how most were struck of this type/variety. As far as W&ET magazine, I sent them photos and was going to submit for find of the year but in the submitting process they want a certificate that it is genuine and I figured when I have the slabbed coin back, then I'll submit it, I also submitted it to Garrett. I'm truly hoping by now people finally understand that this was found by me metal detecting at 13" deep in the soil on November 5th 2015 . Thank you to all of the supporters, I appreciate it. For any further doubt from anyone, won't this be added to the number of known specimens now, proving it wasn't from anywhere else except where I told you all ?

western sky, You just don't give up !! You can't give me a break. I simply was asking what opinions people thought the value might be ? I was guessing between $9-$15K , any people with descent knowledge on this may be willing to give a guesstimate ?

dignit, I'm still on the forum, hanging by a hair! Congratulations on your coin once again, and my apologies for a few of the member's personal attacks on you. I can only attain that it has to be jealousy, so just grin and bear it, for I'm sure these small minds will be behind you, as soon as you delete this forum from your favorites.
Happy hunting & Happy holidays to you and yours!
Regards,
Ron