DUG my first plate in LOUISIANA today! AND a SPANISH SILVER!

[BuckleBoy]

Hello All,

Today was a killer day for me. Got out in the early morning with Shanegalang and decided to make do with some turn rows and the edges of good fields that now have 12 foot tall cane in them. We dug for a good while, picking up a couple flat buttons and odds and ends. Then all of a sudden I dug this big piece of lead. No big deal. We find lots of melted lead in the fields here. BUT then I wiped it off with my glove and saw...an ATTACHMENT HOOK!!! I KNEW it was a plate, and couldn't see what was on the front, but seeing the arrow I was convinced it was Yankee. Here is the video:



And the photo after I cleaned it off in the field:



Doesn't look too bad for being in a plowed field for 150 years. I was VERY lucky to get BOTH letters on the plate! After finding so many taco shaped half reales and other coins, I'm surprised this plate fared as well as it has. I think I will send it to be restored. It's actually my first US plate. I've dug a boxplate, and sword belt plates, breastplates, and militia plates... But finally got one. And in Louisiana to boot.

I ended up with a couple more goodies, including a beat-to-death 1807 half real. This is Spanish Silver #21 for the year for us, and #40 in 20 months. It also puts us up to 72 silvers dug, spanning the 1740s through the 1950s. Nice to see that Reales account for more than half of the total. Hopefully we can keep that record as we push on toward harvest time.



Also got a Knights Templar button. M.C. Lilley & Co. Manufactured between 1865 and 1882.



And a group shot. Not sure what the pewter piece is at the upper right.



Best Wishes and HH,


Buckles

 

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[pepperj]

Great Hunt! That's really good to see that you broke the ice on your first plate, and adding another silver to the count.

 

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[CrazySlasher]

Great stuff! hopefully someday I'll find a plate up here.

 

[TNGUNS]

Wow........ Does my heart good just to see the good stuff still coming out. It has gotten few and far between. Great finds.

 

[Nana40]

WTG on that first! I have a feeling the relic season is going to be exceptional this year. Heck, it already is! haha! Love that button too!
GREAT hunting!...and singing. hahaha...
Nana

 

[CASPER-2]

 

[Westfront]

Congrats Buck! It's a plate no matter what the condition is. I've seen worse things coming out of plowed land!
And the usual spanish silver.... 21 now, i say an easy 30 this year!

 

[CRUSADER]

I'm going to be different & say I like the button!

Your digging Spanish like they are going out of fashion.

 

[BuckleBoy]

Congrats Buck! It's a plate no matter what the condition is. I've seen worse things coming out of plowed land!
And the usual spanish silver.... 21 now, i say an easy 30 this year!

We will certainly try for 30 this year. 31 would be the magic number, as it would give us 50 spanish over two years time. Realistically though I'd say we'll get 27. That's my guess.

I'm going to be different & say I like the button!

Your digging Spanish like they are going out of fashion.

It is an unusual button, and I like it too. Interesting that when the original shank broke it was repaired with an iron loop made from wire. I have dug one other of these, and it was a tiny cuff sized one. That was found in Kentucky years ago.

In terms of spanish, I think they will go out of fashion at some point...because we will have dug them all! But until then, let the party continue!

P.S.--if your signature line is to be believed, there is a gold coin out there somewhere. Lord knows we've dug enough silver to have a shot at one.

Cheers,


Buckles

 

[The Patriot]

Congrats on your first US plate....Yes I was coming close to calling you SpanishBoy...I really hope you continue the rest of the year the same way..

 

[BuckleBoy]

Congrats on your first US plate....Yes I was coming close to calling you SpanishBoy...I really hope you continue the rest of the year the same way..

Haha same here in terms of hopes. It had been a drought since Kentucky in 2010 on the plate. There for a while I was getting several per year on average, so it's great to get one down here.

Cheers,

Buck

 

[River Rat]

As always, some awesome finds & first find. Keep up the great fun!!

 

[CRUSADER]

We will certainly try for 30 this year. 31 would be the magic number, as it would give us 50 spanish over two years time. Realistically though I'd say we'll get 27. That's my guess.



It is an unusual button, and I like it too. Interesting that when the original shank broke it was repaired with an iron loop made from wire. I have dug one other of these, and it was a tiny cuff sized one. That was found in Kentucky years ago.

In terms of spanish, I think they will go out of fashion at some point...because we will have dug them all! But until then, let the party continue!

P.S.--if your signature line is to be believed, there is a gold coin out there somewhere. Lord knows we've dug enough silver to have a shot at one.

Cheers,


Buckles

Gold coins is just a number game. We were talking about whether we would ever get a Roman Gold Coin (in my top 5 wish list). We find about 1 silver for every 50 bronze & we are on 6000 bronze, so I guessed it will be 10,000 bronze to Gold! We have a few years ahead of us....

 

[Bill D. (VA)]

Your amazing hot streak continues Buck. Seems like every time you venture out you're able to put yourself onto some great finds. Wish I had a site I could hit during the summer months, but that's not gonna happen up here. Good luck, and I'm looking forward to seeing your silver count hit the ceiling ..... Bill

 

[wheatfinder13]

Awesome silver

 

[BuckleBoy]

Gold coins is just a number game. We were talking about whether we would ever get a Roman Gold Coin (in my top 5 wish list). We find about 1 silver for every 50 bronze & we are on 6000 bronze, so I guessed it will be 10,000 bronze to Gold! We have a few years ahead of us....

I used to think it was a numbers game on copper to silver ratio, because I got so many more coppers than silvers everywhere else I ever dug. But after living down here, I think it is certainly related to geography. No clue what the ration is here, but I do know that gold is still more elusive than copper here, even though copper is rare! I think we have 4 large cents and 1 6 Deniers French copper as opposed to 72 silvers. Once you dig long enough, as we have, you start to realize that everything is a numbers game, and the only way you'll ever have a chance at finding it is to keep digging, and if you quit digging you will never find one.

Out of curiosity, what are the items on your top five list?


Cheers,

Buck

 

[BuckleBoy]

Your amazing hot streak continues Buck. Seems like every time you venture out you're able to put yourself onto some great finds. Wish I had a site I could hit during the summer months, but that's not gonna happen up here. Good luck, and I'm looking forward to seeing your silver count hit the ceiling ..... Bill

It really shouldn't be happening here with the mud, mosquitos, and heat... but it's hard to let that get in the way of good finds. We probably have 15-20 sites in three Parishes down here, and about 45,000 acres of permission, as best I can guess. Lots that we've never set foot on, except to talk with the owner and keep relations good, telling them we'll get there eventually... Of those sites, perhaps 8 of them are a cut above the rest.

 

[old digger]

Really Cool Finds! Is it possible that the buckle plate may have been brought back south a a souvenir, or where there any skirmishes that far south?
By the way, that button sure is a ''Dandy''!

 

[CRUSADER]

I used to think it was a numbers game on copper to silver ration, because I got so many more coppers than silvers everywhere else I ever dug. But after living down here, I think it is certainly related to geography. No clue what the ration is here, but I do know that gold is still more elusive than copper here, even though copper is rare! I think we have 4 large cents and 1 6 Deniers French copper as opposed to 72 silvers. Once you dig long enough, as we have, you start to realize that everything is a numbers game, and the only way you'll ever have a chance at finding it is to keep digging, and if you quit digging you will never find one.

Out of curiosity, what are the items on your top five list?


Cheers,

Buck

1.Hoard (any type of coin; bronze,silver,gold)
2.Saxon Gold Coin
3.Roman Gold Coin
4.Celtic Bronze Statue
5.Richard I Penny

 

[Erik in NJ]

Awesome hunt & fantastic finds! You're the king of Spanish silver my friend!

 

[PikesPeakCharlie]

Sweeet !!!