1652 Massachusetts Pine Tree Threepence and more from virgin 1660 homesite!

[oxbowbarefoot]

What an incredible day at a 1660 virgin homesite in Massachusetts! My first find was a huge Brown Bess musket ball. Nice way to get the day started. My next target was the best find of the day, and one of my best finds ever, a 1652 Pine Tree Threepence! It's either a Noe 36 or a Noe 37 variety. Unfortunately the tree side is tough to make a definitive call. Either way, it's well over a $1000 coin��. Then came a sweet George I Farthing. Next find was an Abraham Lincoln related thing, not sure what it is yet. Right next to that was a colonial gold broach. After an early ox knob and a a bale seal came a great goulcher lock or dog lock off a musket or rifle. All in all, a fantastic day!

Thank you Dr. R.M. Gramly for the tip on the location!

Updates:
The Pine Tree Threepence is a Noe 36/Salmon 2-B, Rarity 4, only 75-200 known!
The "dog lock" was actually just part of an old cap gun, darn!
The Lincoln item is a ferrotype campaign button from the 1860 election

 

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[lost it]

looks like you had a banner day, nice job

 

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[testing123]

My banner vote is in! If this doesn't make it, but a modern gold coin used as jewelry makes it, something's not right. You have two banner-worthy items - Mass silver and the gold brooch. Wonderful finds.

 

[oxbowbarefoot]

A few better pics:

 

[oxbowbarefoot]

I thought the same. It looked similar to civil war musket lock plates, but I'm not an expert on dating muskets by any means, just a thought I had. Either way it's really cool!

Just heard back from battlefield archaeologist Dan Silivich, you and OutdoorAdv were correct. Its part of a cap gun.

 

[Jeff H]

WOW ! What a hunt! Congrats on the Pine Tree !

 

[Steve in PA]

Congrats on some quality finds, especially the Massa Silver. I am curious as to dating the gold brooch as a colonial piece rather than a later piece seeing that you also found some later material on this site. From what I understand, gold jewelry was extremely rare in colonial days.

 

[Silver Searcher]

Fantastic find, the earliest American coinage you can find. In my opinion these should be automatic banner finds.

SS

 

[mspence]

Saw a guy that found one of those gold leaf wreaths just recently I believe it was found in SC. Great finds

 

[oxbowbarefoot]

Congrats on some quality finds, especially the Massa Silver. I am curious as to dating the gold brooch as a colonial piece rather than a later piece seeing that you also found some later material on this site. From what I understand, gold jewelry was extremely rare in colonial days.

The family that owned the estate was fantastically wealthy and gold items would have been well within their means. There were later finds at the site, but the brooch came from an area that was particularly concentrated with colonial period items, and very little later pieces (pretty much just the Lincoln tintype).

 

[hogge]

ALRIGHT Jason! AKA...."The Ma. Silver Kid"! BANNER!

 

[oxbowbarefoot]

ALRIGHT Jason! AKA...."The Ma. Silver Kid"! BANNER!

Thanks, Todd! I'm hoping to get to back to that site next weekend. Hopefully the owners will be home so I can ask for permission to do around the actual house rather than the margins on the edges of the lot. Like I said to IP, now I just need a Mass 6-pence, 2-pence and any Willow Tree and NE coin to round out a basic type set. Hopes are up, even if the odds aren't.

 

[danjsargent]

Amazing finds! Love my home state! So much history. Glad you got on a new permission. Congrats!

 

[Evolution]

That's one Awesome coin. Congrats on adding that one to the collection.

 

[Brian W]

That is a great site for sure....Mass silver is high on my list...I witnessed a 6 pence dug ...and I was thrilled to see it....Congrats

 

[oxbowbarefoot]

In my previous post I sort of suggested it's too bad it was not just altered, but being reengraved no doubt gives a much better chance for ID. What you do is find a high grade example of each 36 and 37 and note all the small differences.... and then you only have to find one example on your coin to prove your coin. It may be possible.

2-pence, 6-pence, Willow Tree and NE..... Doable? I doubt it... time to work with, hell yeah!

Under magnification I'm able to tell that it is in fact a Noe 36, Salmon 2-B, with a Rarity of 4 (75-200 known). If I had access to a camera better than my iPhone it would be much more obvious in the pictures.

 

[Iron Patch]

Under magnification I'm able to tell that it is in fact a Noe 36, Salmon 2-B, with a Rarity of 4 (75-200 known). If I had access to a camera better than my iPhone it would be much more obvious in the pictures.

That's great. I think it adds quite a bit being able to unequivocally state the variety. I would imagine it's all over the board for value when a coin is close to an ID, but it can't be determined... and my personal opinion is that if a N36 is R4 and N37 a R5... if you can't determine it, it easily drops to an R3 (maybe even a 2) for over all net. I'd want to know, you want to know, and so do the people who buy them.

 

[Professor of Engineering]

Congratualtions on finding one of the "Holy Grail" coins!

 

[oxbowbarefoot]

That's great. I think it adds quite a bit being able to unequivocally state the variety. I would imagine it's all over the board for value when a coin is close to an ID, but it can't be determined... and my personal opinion is that if a N36 is R4 and N37 a R5... if you can't determine it, it easily drops to an R3 (maybe even a 2) for over all net. I'd want to know, you want to know, and so do the people who buy them.

I agree 100%. If I was to spend $1000+ on a coin, I'd want to be darn sure I knew what I was buying. Hopefully these two pictures will help everyone see enough detail. Notice there is no doubling of the letters as there is on the re-engraved Noe 37, Salmon 2a-B.

 

[metalev4]

A really fine hunt. Congrats on multiple killer relics and a coin most of us will only dream of.

 

[fireaero1]

congrats on the finds. tom in central pa