My First Question About A Find. - Coin Community Forum

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Author	Replies: 7 / Views: 2,548
cara Valued Member Uruguay 217 Posts	Posted 01/02/2018 8:25 pm Hello, a few years ago I had ventured into the issue of metal detection, I had built a PI detector that was pretty good but this year for Christmas I received a more professional detector. Santa gave me a Garrett ACE 400i and I have been hunting the last week. Well, as expected, I found a lot of iron garbage until I became familiar with the discrimination and I could ignore them. Aluminum garbage is another problem but it is not as common as iron. I found some modern coins from the 60s and up to one from 1909, of course they are all destroyed by the inclemency of the soil here in the south. But the interesting thing is not what is found if not the adventure ... right? The one thing I found that most caught my attention is the next piece. The garret marked a clear signal of 85 in its scale, at a depth of 10cm. When I unearthed it, it did not have any known shape, so I decided to clean it a bit but it did not help much either, so I decided to break a piece and then I saw a silvery mineral. It weighs 20 gs. and measures 47mm long. Does anyone have any idea what this can be? a mineral rock? Edited by cara 01/02/2018 8:35 pm Report this Post to the Staff

coaster Pillar of the Community Australia 1366 Posts	Posted 01/02/2018 9:20 pm The close up looks like mica. Was it fairly easy to break off and does it appear to be layered? Report this Post to the Staff
Tootallious Rest in Peace United States 1559 Posts	Posted 01/02/2018 9:28 pm That is an interesting find to say the least! The front of it kinda looks like a lizards head I would bring it to a jeweler or a coin dueler to have the metal tested. Report this Post to the Staff
cara Valued Member Uruguay 217 Posts	Posted 01/02/2018 9:32 pm Quote: The close up looks like mica. Was it fairly easy to break off and does it appear to be layered? @coaster, Yes it is.. with my fingers I could not, but with the pliers it broke easily and gives the impression of being brittle, and it is non magnetic. What strikes me are two things, on the one hand the non-geometric shape of the piece and on the other the place where I found it, it is an old farm where during the 20th century it was cultivated, that is, nothing close to mining. Report this Post to the Staff
cara Valued Member Uruguay 217 Posts	Posted 01/02/2018 9:49 pm Quote: I would bring it to a jeweler or a coin dueler to have the metal tested. @Tootallious, You have given me an interesting idea, I will perform a specific gravity test, I have done it before with coins. It's not going to be exact due to the bubbles and impurities It may have but at least it will give me an idea of what metal ..... In hand it seems heavy between bronze and silver, and not as much as lead but that is subjective, the specific gravity test is more objective. Report this Post to the Staff
moxking Rest in Peace United States 17900 Posts	Posted 01/02/2018 9:56 pm This would be better taken to a geologist or rock hound. Report this Post to the Staff
cara Valued Member Uruguay 217 Posts	Posted 01/04/2018 10:24 pm Well, specific gravity performed SG = 6.22 As I said, it is not exact due to the impurities and bubbles that the material could have, besides that my measurement system is not exact. But the actual value I think should be between 6.2 and 6.8. Discarded Mica for being less dense (2.7) and discarded Silver and Lead for being denser (10.5 and 11.35 respectively). The most common elements, close to the 6.2-6.8 range according to a table I found are: Antimony (6.7) Cerium (6.77) Tin ore, cassiterite (6.4 - 7.0) Zinc (6.9 min) I was thinking that maybe it is not a rock but that it could be the result of a fire that melted some metal and this took the form of some crack in the ground where it remained for decades or even a century. What do you think? I do not know what metal it is but if it is Antimony it is toxic!... so I have to wash my hands right now. Report this Post to the Staff
chafemasterj Pillar of the Community United States 6514 Posts	Posted 04/24/2018 3:16 pm I agree with your melted metal theory. If that is the case I'd think you might find other items like it in the general area if they had a 'burn barrel' or fire pit. Check out my counterstamped Lincoln Cent collection: http://goccf.com/t/303507 Report this Post to the Staff
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