Found several of these buried together

[SomeGuy]

Found these at a very junky old cabin site. The rim appears to be aluminum, and the center is now solid and crumbly, may have been more porous and flexible decades ago.

Any ideas?

 

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[Rob66]

Old mirrors? looks like broken glass on one.

 

[trikikiwi]

Hi, I remember finding those things in newly ploughed fields, here in NZ, when I was a kid in the 60's. I recall someone saying they had something to do with soil fertilizers. It's difficult to see a connection.
I'll do a bit of research.
The area was a military base, (I'm an army brat) but I don't think that they are military.
Cheers, Mike

 

[Hill Billy]

Look like the old style tube repair patch.Clamp it down light it on fire and let it do it's thing. jmo HB

 

[PBK]

I think they may be a stack of cells from a battery.

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[blurr]

I think they may be a stack of cells from a battery.

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Battery piles? If you take apart a 9 volt battery, it looks like what was found. Only a lott bigger I think.

John

 

[SomeGuy]

Thanks for the replies. They do seem to be battery cells. At first I was somewhat dubious, thinking that the metal rim, which contacts both sides, would short them out, but it seems to be coated with a hard substance that acts as an insulator.When cleaned with steel wool, I could get no continuity with an ohm meter. The black stuff in the center, which goes all the way though out the back, is conductive.

 

[Bluezman]

Dry cells....yes....the "black stuff" is more than likely carbon.

Bluezman

 

[Monty]

I'll go with the battery parts thing. Can't tell the size of them from the pic but I have one of the first Lowrance fish locators and the old battery for it was made of similar looking material. Monty