# A REAL CHRISTMAS MIRACLE! HUGE TREASURE CACHE FOUND!



## NyDigger1 (Dec 24, 2012)

So heres the story, I went metal detecting yesterday, was supposed to go digging with a bud but my dad couldnt go, he had work in the morning (I have a car, but im not allowed to drive out of the state). I was gonna sleep in but decided, since it was sunny, that I would take a ride around to metal detect. I eventually ended up following a lead on an old area.

 Hour 1: nothing (when I say nothing, I mean some clad and junk)
 Hour 2: nothing
 End of hour 3: ... things got interesting

 I saw an old tree, started detecting and my signals spiked. I dug out an old lead figure, no paint on it, about the size of a half pint blob. Thought nothing of it at first since ive found lead figures and toys both big and small in the past so I put it in my bag, finished detecting around the tree with no luck, went to my car and drove home because by that point my hands turned bright red from the cold.

 I get to the garage, where my dad has shelves for smalls (and where I unload my gear) and was about to put the figure up on one of them. Then i noticed some dirt spilled out, I see that on the side it has a small hole, most lead figures even small ones are hollow. I decided to take it home to rinse it out through that small hole (let it fill up with water, then let it drain out). After the first cleaning I noticed that it was still heavy and that no dirt was coming out of it anymore, heavier than it should be. I let it dry and took a look in the hole. I noticed that there was something shining inside. I looked on the back and to my surprise I noticed a slit on the neck of the figure which turned out is a piggy bank. I look in the hole again with a magnifying glass and noticed that there were a few ribbed coins with white sides, that looked like silver dimes.

 Grabbed the camera, and by that time my dad was home, he filmed, I opened and the result was 346 silver coins

 99 roosevelt dimes
 1 barber dime
 245 mercury dimes
 1 washington quarter

 ALL SILVER, NO CLAD!!! Another good thing, after i pried open the iron cap at the bottom, it was still salvageable, and the piggy bank is still whole and usable! I plan on repainting it over the summer along with another one I found a year ago that was empty.

 Will post the video as soon as it finishes uploading to youtube!


----------



## cyberdigger (Dec 24, 2012)

PICS!!! [8D]

 ..oh and congrats!! Awesome..!!


----------



## epackage (Dec 24, 2012)

Congrats Mike, cool story...


----------



## NyDigger1 (Dec 24, 2012)

thanks guys, the video is uploading as I type this, I only filmed the prying open of it. I gave up on filming my detecting stuff because it slowed me down. I might have a video or two of detecting up on my channel. I know I have 1 for sure...


----------



## buzzkutt033 (Dec 24, 2012)

how cool is that !!!  congrats and thanx for sharing with us !!!!


 jim


----------



## JOETHECROW (Dec 24, 2012)

Wonderful ! Can't wait to see your find. Very cool story and Christmas gift.


----------



## tigue710 (Dec 24, 2012)

wow!  way to go, exciting find...  Imagine it could have sat on that shelf for years without anyone knowing the better too


----------



## NyDigger1 (Dec 25, 2012)

VIDEO----------->>>>>>>>>>>>>> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6X0P_SYoleI


----------



## LC (Dec 25, 2012)

Great find Mike . I see you were performing a major operation , had the surgical gloves on and all lol . Makes for a nice Xmas gift .


----------



## NyDigger1 (Dec 25, 2012)

thanks, and yea, i wore gloves because I dont want to get lead poisoning... I think ive had too much exposure already over the past 6 years lol


----------



## LC (Dec 25, 2012)

Never hurts to be careful . I remember when I used to dig in the old ash dumps . Cut my hands and figures a good many times , sometimes pretty bad . I would rub some ash into the cut to stop the bleeding and keep on digging . As you can see I had it bad ! Surprised I did not get infected doing that but never did .


----------



## NyDigger1 (Dec 25, 2012)

Ive been through the same thing while looking for scrap metal, fortunately there was some nice thick mud nearby to i just put it over the wounds, never got sick or infected either. [8D][8D][8D]


----------



## cadburys (Dec 25, 2012)

WOW!! that is amazing.

 Were there any semi/key date mercs?

 Ant


----------



## JOETHECROW (Dec 25, 2012)

Pretty cool! The lead figure bank may have some value too.


----------



## Penn Digger (Dec 25, 2012)

Nice Mike.  Good for you.  Great Xmas present to yourself.  Thanks for sharing.

 PD


----------



## Poison_Us (Dec 25, 2012)

Great score!  Thanks for sharing.


----------



## cacarpetbagger (Dec 25, 2012)

Very exciting, congrats on your find.  I to would like to know if there are any rare dates?


----------



## KBbottles (Dec 25, 2012)

Absolutely incredible!!


----------



## rpinkham (Dec 25, 2012)

Gotta love those once in a lifetime finds!  Thanks for the show and tell.


----------



## 2find4me (Dec 25, 2012)

Did you find any rare dates yet?[]


----------



## Steve/sewell (Dec 25, 2012)

Great find Mike,truly a once in a life time event. Enjoyed your video also.... Merry Christmas to you!!!


----------



## jonahtroy (Dec 25, 2012)

So Cool!! I was just metal detecting with the one i got for christmas and I found some pretty neat stuff. Amazing find though


----------



## AlexD (Dec 25, 2012)

Wow! Keep the coins, NO NOT SELL THEM UNLESS THEY'RE RARE. Not a lot of people know about it, but Silver is now as rare as Platinum. They say by 2020 Silver will be the first element on the table to be gone forever. Almost all the Silver in the ground (nuggets) have been dug out. Silver is used in almost every electronic, growing every year. They use millions and millions of pounds a year for Coffee makers, Dishwashers, etc. China, as well as many other countries have ordered for BILLIONS of Solar Panels to be made by 2020. It takes nearly 2/3 of an oz of Silver to make just one. It's going fast[]  Yet again, nice finds! Be sure they're safe! You already have a few hundreds worth. By 2020, maybe enough to by a house[]


----------



## deenodean (Dec 25, 2012)

A once in a lifetime find! Excellent story and video! Any appraised value?


----------



## NyDigger1 (Dec 25, 2012)

thanks everyone, video is here:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6X0P_SYoleI&list=UUJ20KK9BQ5grR3imGXChf7A&index=1

 Didnt go through anything yet, just rinsed and set them out. I let them dry overnight so the loose stuff could crumble off, will soak later and let everyone know if there are any rare dates, The value of them, just as silver is about $770. 

 This is just as good as the gold coin I detected a few years ago [8D], not my pic, but its the same year as the one I have.







 MERRY CHRISTMAS!


----------



## AlexD (Dec 25, 2012)

One thing I used to clean regular coins is lemon juice. I'm not sure if you should use it on silver of not.[8|]


----------



## NyDigger1 (Dec 25, 2012)

> ORIGINAL:  AlexD
> 
> One thing I used to clean regular coins is lemon juice. I'm not sure if you should use it on silver of not.[8|]


 
 NONONO, Its like acid to the coin. this is what I do.

 I use these methods:

 Gold Coins: NOTHING (dont even rub it with a tooth brush)

 Silver Coins:

 If coins are in good shape: 
 warm water, soap, tooth brush

 If coins are caked / non visible date:
 1: Electrolysis- run an electrical current of 16-20V through the coin in sat water using a battery adapter. This gets the crud off but leaves black staining
 2: Clean the blackened coin with baking soda, soak in a cup, about 15 drops lemon juice and the rest warm water, for 2 hours, no more because then the coin will permanently turn yellow
 3: put it in the tumble for about 5 hours

 Copper coins:
 Good shape: nothing
 Bad shape: tumbler for about 48 hours


----------



## Plumbata (Dec 25, 2012)

WOW!

 That is extraordinary, a huge congratulations to you!

 That bank alone would be a good find, but overflowing with silver too? Incredible!

 When you get a chance am curious what the last year represented is, and I would likewise like to know if there are any key date mercs in there. If you pull a '16 D or 1942/1 outta there I'll be speechless. []

 Also, dunno if you frequent the Treasurenet metal detecting forums, but if you posted this discovery in the "Today's Finds" forum you would really liven the place up, and the cache would probably get voted as a "banner" find, which would get ya a boatload of respect and admiration from that community.  Be one heckuva way to make an entrance. []


----------



## cyberdigger (Dec 25, 2012)

Wouldn't electrolysis be the obvious answer for cleaning them?


----------



## Dabeel (Dec 25, 2012)

What a Christmas gift for yourself!...you should post the cache story on some coin collecting website...it's a good one for sure.

 Doug


----------



## Asterx (Dec 25, 2012)

Congrats! And to find it all in one nice bank to boot []


----------



## RICKJJ59W (Dec 25, 2012)

Cool find on the bank NY. That bank might be worth more then the coins []


----------



## LC (Dec 25, 2012)

I am surprised the bank is made of lead , never seen one made of lead . Seems like it sould have been made of cast iron .


----------



## NyDigger1 (Dec 26, 2012)

Turns out that regular treatment isnt working, the coins closest to the iron cap are covered in rust that spilled from it, the ones touching the lead got caked from natural electrolysis in the ground (the same can be seen with copper jacket bullets, either the lead takes over the copper and spills out, or the lead falls out, rarely do you still have the even proportion). The ones near the opening oxidized to black. Will do my best to clean them naturally, and will keep soaking them for a few days, but its not looking good... Ill probably have to use electrolysis and tumble a large portion.


----------



## idigjars (Dec 26, 2012)

Very cool story.  Congrats on your finds.  Paul


----------



## elmoleaf (Dec 26, 2012)

*Never *clean a silver coin that has collector value with a toothbrush or by wiping with your thumb or anything else. Silver is incredibly soft and toothbrushes will leave fine hairline scratches all over the coin. It might look ok to you, but it will never be able to be professionally graded and collectors will not buy it. You can reduce the collector value by half or more.

 Obviously, tumbling is considerably more abrasive and should only be done on clad coins you intend to spend.

 Electrolysis is the way to go. It actually can take only a matter of 5 minutes or so for not so crusty stuff.
 Don't wipe any coins....blot them.
 Good luck....and if you have time, post the dates/mintmarks. It'd be interesting to know what was circulating in the the late 1940s.


----------



## acls (Dec 26, 2012)

This story made my day.  It was really smart film the opening.  I don't know that I would have been able to contain myself and probably would have just ripped into it straight away.  Congratualtions!


----------



## Dansalata (Dec 26, 2012)

GREAT FINDS..THANKS FOR THE STORY AND VIDEO!!!MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!


----------



## GuntherHess (Dec 26, 2012)

In general I would agree with elmoleaf , cleaning coins is a bad bad thing to collectors.
 But , as a person that has dug a lot of coins , sometimes there isnt a lot of choice.
 The goal is to do as little harm as possible. A collector would probably prefer a dirty original coin than a shiny scratched coin.
 I would first separate out any coins which might have more than bullion value ... rare dates/mint marks or ones that are in exceptional condition (if any). The rest are probably just going to be of low value and you can clean any way you want without affecting then too much. For rust you might want something with oxalic acid like barkeeper's friend (but not the abraisive type).
 Just my opinion of course. Excellent find.


----------



## NyDigger1 (Dec 26, 2012)

PICTURES (please do not use or send them anywhere else without asking me first, it might sound weird but people have used my pics without permission in the past):


----------



## NyDigger1 (Dec 26, 2012)

newest coin in the bunch as far as ive seen is 1952, oldest is 1909 barber


----------



## Plumbata (Dec 26, 2012)

Dang, most such caches I've heard of contained silver dating right up to '64. Wonder if it was buried by a soldier leaving for Korea or something of the like. That find is something most detectorists dream of. Awesome.

 Anyway, tumbling or cleaning the coins with abrasives is not recommended, but they are yours so by all mean do what you want. If you're open to suggestion however, I second Matt's opinion that the afflicted coins should be soaked in a solution of Oxalic acid. Often this can take a little while. If the pure material isn't available then a solution of BKF will probably work, just keep the insoluble abrasive component away from the coins.


----------



## coldwater diver (Dec 26, 2012)

Plumbata, that is exactly what I was thinking. Why would you bury it in the first place?


----------



## RIBottleguy (Dec 26, 2012)

Wow, that's an awesome find!!!  I wonder if some kid was saving up for something when he had to hide it and was never able to go back for it.  It's certainly a tremendous discovery!


----------



## GuntherHess (Dec 26, 2012)

The fact that its almost all dimes should be a clue to who buried it.
 Most likely someone who did a job or sold a product which cost 10 cent. Maybe a kid who got 10 cent a week allowance.
 Someone could have even broke into the change box on a vending machine. 
 Its odd to find a cache with just one denomination of coin.  Caches of coins in general are not all that rare.
 Seems like I always hit the penny caches[]


----------



## 2find4me (Dec 26, 2012)

Better than me, I always hit the nail caches! []


----------



## surfaceone (Dec 26, 2012)

Hey Mike,

 Second day of Christmas congratulations on this find, and your video.






 "Bama bank. Aunt Jemima clad in blue and white long dress holding a laundry basket under her right hand. Some chipping and fading of paint. H:5.5". Bottom missing. G." From.

 Dimes were a savings vehicle since the mid 19th Century.






 "Union Dime Savings Bank, New York" From.






 "An  1869 dime bank  stamped The B. & R. M'F'G. Co. " From.




From.




From.


----------



## RCO (Dec 27, 2012)

super cool find , i've went metal detecting before and never found anything along that line before , mostly jusr newer coins and junk .
 some rare dates to look for are 1921 , 1916 D , 1913 S  but even if there is no rare dates in the mix just the silver content alone is impressive .


----------



## MrSchulz (Dec 27, 2012)

You should post this on treasurenet.. i bet you get banner for it!  Great finds


----------



## THE BADGER (Dec 28, 2012)

AWESOME MIKE,WAY TO GO.THE BANK ITSELF WOULD HAVE MADE MY DAY THE LOOT IS OUTSTANDING.HOPE THERE'S LOTS MORE OF THESE KINDS OF FINDS OUT THERE FOR YA.  BADGER


----------



## surfaceone (Dec 28, 2012)

> ORIGINAL:  NyDigger1
> 
> Turns out that regular treatment isnt working, the coins closest to the iron cap are covered in rust that spilled from it, the ones touching the lead got caked from natural electrolysis in the ground


 
 Hey Mike,

 How goes the soaking? I'm with Louis on it being a cast iron bank. I'd be flabbergasted, were it otherwise. Lead based paint, for sure, so keep your HazMat flag flying. [8D] 

 Could you take her into some nice natural light, and do some closeup portraitry, please. I think you'll see that the iron is rusting beneath the paint remnants. For me, she's the highlight of the show.


----------



## GuntherHess (Dec 28, 2012)

a lot of cast banks were made of pot metal.


----------



## Plumbata (Dec 28, 2012)

Yeah, Pot/White Metal is the first thing I thought when I saw the pics. Wouldn't be surprised if it contains some lead, but it is probably constituted primarily of zinc. 

 I was thinking about the rust issue, and wonder if "Naval Jelly" would work, pretty sure it is phosphoric acid that gives the stuff its rust-eating kick. Not sure if it would harm the silver or not but it might be worth a shot.


----------



## surfaceone (Dec 28, 2012)

Hey Matt & Stephen,

 I'm seeing rust beneath the paint, I think. "Pot metal" doesn't rust, but will corrode / get crusty. Isn't it usually zinc heavy? Maybe Mike will do some more photos...

 "There is no scientific metallurgical standard for pot metal; common metals in pot metal include zinc, lead, copper, tin, magnesium, aluminium, iron, and cadmium. The primary advantage of pot metal is that it is quick and easy to cast." wiki-pot metal.


----------



## RICKJJ59W (Dec 28, 2012)

Mike I will put your story on my site this weekend. Once again Cool finds


----------



## GuntherHess (Dec 28, 2012)

pot metal varied a lot in composition.
 its was normally mostly zinc.
 It is easy to tell from lead since its much harder.
 Pure lead is so soft its tough to make anything that will last out of it. 
 Anything that bumps it will ding it up.


----------



## NyDigger1 (Dec 29, 2012)

Thanks for all of the messages. So heres whats going to go down with the find:

 Im going to keep it, one whole cache, not selling any of it unless there's a 1916-D.

 Im going to insulate the interior with a thin layer of rubber (will peel off at any time).

 YES It it lead, Ive had my share of lead experience (and exposure) over the years, toys, a second empty bank I found 3 years ago, costume jewelry, toy soldiers. And the bank is very malleable, after soaking it in water, post prying the cap I was able to, with my fingers, remold the bottom closure to be able to still hold the iron cap (which will also be insulated from the inside), and to open at any given time. After It dried it became hard again, same thing that happens with lead toy soldiers.

 I wont repaint it, Ive had a couple of people here on the forum and outside of the forum tell me not to, its either original paint or no paint, so ill leave it as it is.

 The coins themselves will go through electrolysis (almost all of them) and a tumble for the ones that are caked and have an unreadable date.

 I wont do anything to them until it gets warmer, summer, since I have school, and because electrolysis causes fumes and I cant open any windows because of the cold.

 I have not yet gone through the dates, I will do so within the next few days and let you guys know what they are (or at least the readable ones).

 thanks for the kind words everyone, and sorry if I didnt write back to all of you individually, too many people to write back at once [][][]


----------

