Newbie needs help, buying right equipment for possible treasure:)

[willkan]

Hello guys,

My name is Will and i'm from Amsterdam (the Netherlands).

The story begins with a possible little bag with diamonds and maybe some gold.

My great grandfather had a big jewelry stores, before wo II. One of the biggest in the Netherlands.
But he was jewish, so he knew that the germans would get him.

So he buried allot of diamonds in his garden, maybe even some gold.
He had a really big terrain and he buried it at night. At that point he hadn't told anybody about it.

After a few months, the germans came to his house and they send him to a concentration camp. As many of you know, almost nobody got out of there alive. but he did, he was one of the hand few of people that survived.

After he got back, he searched for the diamonds. but he did not find it. He said he put it at a landmark but he couldn't remember where, offcours this came because of the traumatic things he went trough.

after a few months, he got weaker and stopped looking for it. at that time it was 200.000 gulden worth of diamonds. He stopped looking and went on with his life.


Now 3 generations further, we are still in possession of the house he lived in. I think its finally time to search for the diamonds again. My father and I are going to look for them.

What do you guys think is the best way to search for them. For sure there are diamonds, and maybe some gold, we don't know how he buried it. (metal case, leather bag, can. we don't know)

I was searching on the internet and found some ray finder, it says it can find diamond. for me it looks like a scam.


Sorry for my bad English and for the long post!

 

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[Hoser John]

Horrendous story of nazi mania not new for sure. There will be plenty of trash because of the age of the home-not stated but at least 70 years anyhow. Importation laws-barriers-will make it much harder to obtain american made units thanx to the EU. If me I'd go with a good vlf unit with FULL real discrimination and you'll soon see why. GOOGLE to find local detector shop as you'll need support,help and direction in obtaining your specific goal. Hiring a local expert is almost always a much better idea as once neighbors/passerbys/ lookieloos see whats up your in trouble..LOOSE LIPS SINK SHIPS as historical districts prevail and the news spreads FAST of treasure retreival-silence is always golden but diamonds mo'better-lotza luck-John

 

[Goodyguy]

Beware of scams.

If it were my property I would first try a metal detector, a really good one, and if that fails then try using a "probe" (a 5' long steel rod attached to a T handle) push it into the ground around any landmarks that look promising also look for a small depression in the ground (any dug hole usually leaves one over time)

If that fails then check on renting a GPR (ground penetrating radar) takes some schooling on operating one successfully. A local archaeology club may be willing to help you by providing one complete with operator. (worth a shot but due to security would make it a last resort)

If a gpr is out of the question then why not try using a homemade set of "dowsing rods" (nothing to lose) do a google search on "dowsing" for more info. I have used them with mixed results but have been sucessful more times than not.

If all that fails then it's time to see how bad you really want to recover the treasure. Grid off the property and start digging, first around any landmarks that look promising and then work your way out from there.

Good luck, I hope you find what you seek

GG~

 

[Lanny in AB]

If he left a journal with any written reflections on the actual burial details of the gold or diamonds, see if there's any mention of depth--how deeply he buried the diamonds or gold. That will help you when you purchase or rent a metal detector (bigger coils go deeper than small ones). As John said, discrimination (it accepts or rejects metal objects based on their metallic composition) will be essential because of the likely trash that's accumulated on your land from many years of occupation.

If the containers for the diamonds were metal, it's my understanding that your soil is very damp, and if the containers for the diamonds were iron or steel, they'll be very corroded or completely rusted away by now. However, if there's gold buried, the moisture will not corrode the gold, and a good quality metal detector will be very useful to a skilled user.

Try to post your request on one of the treasure-hunting threads here on Treasure Net, or a metal detecting thread. You'll probably get some great ideas from knowledgable people there as well.

If you've never used a metal detector, it's going to take some time to get used to how they operate. You don't just buy one and know how to run it--it takes a lot of time to know your machine and its capabilities. So, why not buy one and start by learning your machine. Get permission from other land owners at various locations and see what you can find while you're learning your machine (coins, artifacts, etc.).

Your country has been inhabited (by people using metal [and coins] for far, far longer than our land here in North America. Therefore, you'll probably have a good chance of finding some very interesting objects while you're learning to detect. But, most of all, you'll know your machine very well by the time you start searching your own property, and by then, maybe your neighbors will be so used to you poking around with your metal detector, they'll think your'e just on another of your routine coin or artifact hunts.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[Goldwasher]

Its your yard just make a screen and dig and search the what in the screen. Do you have any Idea what type of container he buried it in? If it wasn't metal then a metal detector is pointless. Don't forget that if Grandpa was such a well known jeweler, his neighbors could have been smart enough to search after he was taken away...his non jewish neighbors were still in occupied territory and diamonds would have gotten them things otherwise unobtainable. Not saying it was found but, could be why your grandfather had a hard time after the war. I realize he was traumatized but, as he searched his memory could have been jogged.. maybe. If you are going to go for it just make it look like your re planting your whole yard do it in sections. As John said do to age there may be a lot of " trash" from the day of old. Even those could be valuable. I don't think it will be to hard to find a good detector a the Eurozone is not a void of detectors...obviously you have heard of them there are most likely local clubs where you could share your story and ask some questions, however due to the potential value I would keep it in the family you and your dad is all you need. Grandpa didn't bury them deep...he would have been planning a quick recovery I wager.....Did he have neighbors at the time that could see in the yard? If so look for a spot with easy access from the house, yet shielded from view of the neighbors. Save money go at it like an archeological dig and look close cause if the diamonds were in a bag or wooden box those are rotten and gone, the diamonds are in the soil now...and there is no diamond detector, other than your eyes. Good luck hope you find something.

 

[Goodyguy]

Typical spot to start is a landmark away from neighbors prying eyes but able to be seen from his bedroom window, a common practice of the time.
Why seen from a bedroom window? So he could get quick eyes on the area if prowlers were heard at night.

Any detector has more depth when used in all metal mode and not discrimination so use wisely. Don't be in too big of a hurry this could take awhile and do not get discouraged, the goal is worth the effort. Who knows you may even find a bigger treasure than the one he buried.

Years of treasure hunting experience has taught me NOT to use discrimination and to dig all targets, especially if an area contains a known treasure. One mans trash is another mans treasure and all that. Time is on your side so just go for it.

Not sure what you would discriminate against anyway. If diamonds were buried in an iron container or even a wooden box that was held together with nails or had metal hinges then you just discriminated yourself out of a fortune. (even if the Iron rusted away the detector will still pick up the rust mineralized soil in all metal mode)

Different story when looking for coins/jewelery on a public beach or playground, YES by all means use your detectors discrimination feature to null out the trash. Using the discrimination feature saves time and digging when wanting to cherry pick an area for precious metals. But since time is on your side, go for maximum depth.

I would advise for you to practice detecting on your own ground, no use wasting time working someone else's trash plus they get mad if you don't know how to cut and replace a plug so the grass doesn't die every where you dug a hole. Of course there is a lot to learn about using a detector and you will definitely want headphones to hear the really faint signals that clue you in about the depth of an object.

As has been stated even if the treasure or it's container contains metal you still may not be able to find it with a detector especially if it's deeply buried or has settled deeper than the detectors capability.

Have a cover story for your digging...... "Got a detector for Christmas and looking for old coins or relics" or some such, just don't let anyone know the real story.

GG~