OP
OP
49r Relics
Hero Member
- Jan 11, 2008
- 789
- 686
- 🥇 Banner finds
- 2
- Detector(s) used
- Minelab CTX 3030, Garrett AT Pro, Makro Racer 2, Garrett Pro-Pointer, Detector Pro Grey Ghost headphones, Lesche diggers, Apex picks.
- Primary Interest:
- All Treasure Hunting
- Thread starter
- #21
Hi Dug,
It's just a theory but here is my take on the gold nuggets. We are choosing to detect anywhere we can get permission to where there are natural quartz out croppings nearby. As recent as 20,000 years ago there was an ice age where glaciers as tall as 2 miles covered the entire state of California (actually, all the way to the equator). As you can imagine, these massive ice sheets would move across the land and by the shear force of their weight, they would crush the quartz out croppings and thereby liberate the gold within. As the sheets continued to move, they would move the nuggets (and all rocks, boulders, etc) along and away from the soure. Scientists theorize that these ice age events have happened many times in the last 1.8 million years, therefore, even after the nuggets were liberated by earlier events, the more recent events move the gold around even more. This gold is eluvial (not Aluvial) gold found near it's source material (quartz) and has never been in a stream bed, creek, river, etc. So that is why these nice nuggets are just out there waiting for us to find them. I also have another theories about gold patches in our area. We have small mammals like gophers and ground squirrels as well as owls that are constantly burrowing under the ground. When they come across a rock or pebble, they kick it out of their tunnel/burrow and they have been doing this for thousands of years. I believe that some of our smaller nuggets in the patches are shallow because the critters keep re-digging them and kicking them back to the top soil.
Anyways, all just my theories The beautiful specimens we found were all at a site where miners were digging in placer veins and broke up the quartz with tools and explosives, we are just finding the pieces that they missed because they were covered with mud, or? But they are not from a huge, commercial mining operation like the 16:1. Really common to see milky white quartz with gold in it around these parts.
Thanks for your kind words!
HH, Mark
It's just a theory but here is my take on the gold nuggets. We are choosing to detect anywhere we can get permission to where there are natural quartz out croppings nearby. As recent as 20,000 years ago there was an ice age where glaciers as tall as 2 miles covered the entire state of California (actually, all the way to the equator). As you can imagine, these massive ice sheets would move across the land and by the shear force of their weight, they would crush the quartz out croppings and thereby liberate the gold within. As the sheets continued to move, they would move the nuggets (and all rocks, boulders, etc) along and away from the soure. Scientists theorize that these ice age events have happened many times in the last 1.8 million years, therefore, even after the nuggets were liberated by earlier events, the more recent events move the gold around even more. This gold is eluvial (not Aluvial) gold found near it's source material (quartz) and has never been in a stream bed, creek, river, etc. So that is why these nice nuggets are just out there waiting for us to find them. I also have another theories about gold patches in our area. We have small mammals like gophers and ground squirrels as well as owls that are constantly burrowing under the ground. When they come across a rock or pebble, they kick it out of their tunnel/burrow and they have been doing this for thousands of years. I believe that some of our smaller nuggets in the patches are shallow because the critters keep re-digging them and kicking them back to the top soil.
Anyways, all just my theories The beautiful specimens we found were all at a site where miners were digging in placer veins and broke up the quartz with tools and explosives, we are just finding the pieces that they missed because they were covered with mud, or? But they are not from a huge, commercial mining operation like the 16:1. Really common to see milky white quartz with gold in it around these parts.
Thanks for your kind words!
HH, Mark
Mark, I read back through the whole thread and see its too bad about not being able to make Banner with find (pg 10). There's too many crazy rules in this world, lol. I was wondering like everyone else how these coins came to hit the ground. Your research findings about gold coin for land and real estate transactions and then the saddle bag theory make perfect sense.
Now the gold nuggets. Do you think they also were drops or could they be original to the ground? The soil just doesn't look like the usual gravel nuggets are found in. Your newest nugget with the old and quartz is beautiful and looks like the stuff foun in the 16:1 mine. Not sure how close you are to that area as I'm a real rookie from Ny State. If I could guess I'd guess it was from a robbery of an assay office or a bank; but that just guessing'. I love this stuff man, so keep it up and keep us all entertained with your gold on gold discoveries with some more silver thrown in. LmaoGreen with envy! Dug
