Hello, New Member... A Brief Introduction.

As an introduction...

My name is Robert. I reside in northern Kentucky very near Cincinnati (but I am a Browns fan ). I collect some late-Roman bronze coins, but my main interest is in Spanish maradevis (pre-1700).

I am a retired (as in forced retirement; I am far too young to be permanently retired) photojournalist/writer/editor. I also spent 8 years as a metals conservator at a large private museum, and while earning my masters in English, taught freshman composition at a public university.

My interest in maradevis stems from my collecting and research of early (1520-1650) Spanish Colonial Americas button types (I have recently had published an article on specific examples from the 1565 expedition of Pedro Menendez de Aviles to St. Augustine).

As a hobby, I conserve excavated buttons (not just Spanish, also Napoleonic buttons from the 1812 Russian Campaign) as well as the occasional coin (only when necessary).

I've joined to learn and for a sense of community. My interests are hyper focused, and I am isolated, so the Internet is the only real avenue of discourse available to me. Also, there is not a lot written on the maradevis (at least not in English), so I am hoping to connect with other collectors of these little gems.

Thank you for your time.

Robert