I have no clue...

[lilniki]

Hi all! I am still pretty new and have only searched the back yard so far (although I am for some adventure this weekend) just to get a hang of it. So the first round was a quarter, a block of wood (ha) and a ton of screws. My second round I figured out how to discriminate and locked out the building materials. I got a whole lot a nuthin until just as I was about to quit...it was a coke can about 5" down. So I filled in the hole and figured I would search a little more then again just as I was about to quit I got another hit. So I dig and dig and the pin pointer kept going off just under where was digging. Finally about a foot down (maybe a little more) I finally hear the scrape of metal on my trowel. So long story short I end up with a hole about a foot and half deep and about 2 feet wide that produces this round thing that I have no idea what it is.
So the details of it are: The blue brush in the pic is 8" long and on the other side if "it" is the coke can, for reference. There is a lip around the edge that is about 1/2"- 1" wide and the metal is curled under on the back side. I have yet to find any identifiable markings but there is some sort of coating left in some places. The "coating" looks similar to when an old plate crackles.
I am not under any kind of impression that this is something valuable, but it would be nice to know if I should dig up that whole corner of the yard! So here's hoping to find out what it could be.
Thanks in advance,
Niki

 

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[vibes]

Looks like a big Mason Jar lid

 

[traderoftreasures]

like a 5 gallon mason jar.

 

[vibes]

like a 5 gallon mason jar.

and you think it's ....what?

 

[artyfacts]

Looks like the bottom of a paint can, old dried paint or varnish will craze, or check giving it that crackled look . I remember my father putting my sisters pet in a empty paint can and burying it at the back of the property ceremony and all. Some people buried there valuables, some there trash. Always recheck the hole for possible good targets. Good hunting. Arty

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

Hello lilniki. Welcome to TN.

First of all how old is your house? You wont find anything old if you dont look in an old area. If your home is old, I would suggest looking where people would lose coins or jewelry, such as getting out of the car, along the sidewalk, where children play, under a shade tree perhaps, and under the old clothesline. What you found appears to be from a paint can. Its really too rusted to tell. I hope this helps.

BTW how old was the quarter?

 

[lilniki]

Hey Big Cypress!
The house is not very old, 1999. I did not really expect anything really groovy and this find certainly exceeded my expectations. While the house and the development are not old my general has links to Indian settlements dating back to at least the 1500's and cthe civil war with an old ruined civil war sugar plantation being about 3 miles as the crow flies.
Most likely I have some sort of building material from when the area was developed but I have gotten some interesting hints about old mason type jars.
I will probably dig up that corner of the yard anyway just cause its fun! The neighbors in the area say the people that built the house were kinda "weird" so maybe he buried some stuff, who knows. BTW I found under the site of an old plastic kids playhouse that they built a wooden foundation for and put pavers around. It was right next (about 1/2 an inch) to one of the pavers, so maybe I will pick them up and swing some more.
Thanks for all of the help peeps, Hopefully I will be on my way to truly good finds when I get into the park!

 

[GopherDaGold]

First of all welcome to T-Net!

I agree that it could be from a large can which begs the question:
Why aren't you out there finding what was IN the can?

 

[traderoftreasures]

like a 5 gallon mason jar.

and you think it's ....what?

larger than a soda can is what they have for a size reference. so i thought larger than a mason jar

 

[CRUSADER]

Is the coating white? (does have to be but usually is)

Pretty sure its a circa 1880s-1920s enamelled metal plate (for eating off). I have found a few, still got quite a nice tea cup.

 

[Dano Sverige]

Hi Niki and welcome.
I said "bottom of a 5 gallon paint can" from the first look..and will stick with that.People used to..and still do..throw a lot of rubbish in the corner of the garden and it gets buried and rots over the years. It doesn't really matter when a house was built if it's newish..you just have to do a little local research to find out what if anything,was on that land in times past.People find valueable things in the most remote places,and if someone builds a house in those places then the goodies end up in the back yard.
Join the local historical society and the library and dig out old maps etc.It'll also help you find other good places you can maybe hunt too.

Where in the states are you? Other folk here may be able to point you in the right direction and may even live close enough for a joint trip etc.
Whatever,don't let people or failure to find anything good right away put you off.Keep at it.Patience and perseverence are very much a part of this hobby.Good luck.

 

[NHBandit]

Very hard to tell from the picture but is it slightly rounded ? Like dished ? The paint can cover sounds logical but the first thought that came to my mind before reading those suggestions was one of the guards or whatever they're called that go under the burners on a stove to catch the grease.

 

[Gonehunting]

lilnikki welcome to tnet...not sure on the metal...

 

[lilniki]

Thanks everyone for all of the helpful thoughts! I am still unsure of "it" actually is and I will soon start to excavate that corner of my yard to see if maybe there are more goodies.
There a few other questions, it is round in shape and does have a "plate" type look. I lice in central FL between Gainseville and Orlando. I have been doing a lot of research and by no means an expert yet (on my area) but there has been consistent settlement in this area since the 1500's (at least). There are numerous native American sites, as well, as civil war. I am working locating maps and such for a more in depth look at my area. I am still under the impression that my find is fairly new and just a neat thing to find in my backyard, but who knows.
There are two interesting facts that keep me wondering about "it". The first is that the edges are rolled under very tightly. The second is the coating still left in some small spots. The rolled edges lead me to believe it is not all that old as they look like a machine type precision. The coating looks a lot like when an old plate has the crackled look, like the top coat has been shattered but the "body" is fully intact.
Again thank you for the input, I am going to leave this post unchecked for now so that maybe I can get some clues. Hopefully, I will be able to mark it solved soon!
HH,
Niki

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

I dont know what it is, so I probably should reserve comment, but I have a feeling that, in this condition, it would have no value, monetarily or historically. Unless you find other evidence to go along with it, besides a stay on pulltab beer can and clad quarter, we can assume its modern. It will also be hard to identify these rusted pieces because it has deteriorated so badly and has no markings.

 

[CRUSADER]

Is the coating white? (does have to be but usually is)

Pretty sure its a circa 1880s-1920s enamelled metal plate (for eating off). I have found a few, still got quite a nice tea cup.

I stick with this, looks exactly like many other pieces I have not kept. Enamelled plates crack in the way described above & the rolled edge.

 

[miser]

It's definitely a lid of soem kind.

If I were betting, I'd say its a lid to a paint or stain can.

 

[wwace]

Looks like a bucket lid or bottom to me, if it was a plate there would be traces of the enamel left as the enamel is more durable than the steel body. If you had little blue, white or red enamel shards you would definitely have a plate. It is quite common for the landscapers to cover the trash pit created when the home was built.

Welcome to Tnet, now go dig up the rest of the yard

 

[traderoftreasures]

lid to tar bucket