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United Kingdom Detector Finds Database Newsletter - Issue Number 5 - January 2008

UKDFD

BORROWEDtimes

www.ukdfd.co.uk

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GORDONSCARINUSAUREUS -

What a

Cracker!

GORDONSCARINUSAUREUS -What aCracker!

UKDFD 5578

Gordon Walters (Polgor), whofound his gold coin on FireworksDay 2006, describes the find as: abloody cracker and asks if wewould allow him to blow his owntrumpet. After some thirty-sixyears detecting, Gordon, why not!

The aureus of Carinus won themost significant coin prize in TheSearcher magazines NationsGreatest Finds contest and is,without doubt, Gordons best evercoin find.

He says, My detecting actuallystarted as a spin-off from my interestin electronics. I was looking for aproject and decided on building(from scratch) a pulse inductiondetecting machine. After a few weekswork and after resolving someproblems with the coil windings andsome weight issues, it was eventuallyfinished.

Taking it out to the local park for atest run (complete with Pipe FindersLicence costing ten shillings), I wasamazed at the depth I was picking upVictorian coins - trust me, it wouldeasily outstrip some of todaysmodels! However, the fact that it hadno discrimination soon dawned onme. So, because by this time I waswell and truly hooked, I bought myfirst discrimination machine, which Istill own.

I worked the local parks for a fewmonths and made some nice finds,but they were all relatively modern.

After reading articles in TheSearcher about such things ashammered coins and Saxon artefactsI joined a detecting club to see how Icould improve on my finds. This issomething I would advise allnewcomers to do for it is one of thequickest ways to learn and there is

really good banter.My dear wife, who is my greatestdetecting partner, has made somevery nice finds and is probably amuch keener detectorist than myself.

It may sound silly to some of you,but this coin was just too good andrare to keep and after being dulyrecorded it sadly went to auctionwhere it realised the sum of just overfive thousand pounds (with fees).

GOOD PRESENTATIONGordon always makes sure thatwhen he presents his finds foruploading to the database they arealways the best he can produce. Nofuzzy pictures; no garish colouredbackgrounds.

He says, Im of the opinion thatif you spend hours finding theselittle treasures, then why not go theextra mile with your presentation!

They also look great in yourFinds Album .

Please advise us ofany errors on ourdatabase. We arekeen to maintainthe highest possiblestandards.

Ill give you an accurate identification with full references, a professionalvaluation, plus an illustrated Celtic catalogue, all free of charge. ElizabethCottam, Chris Rudd Box 222, Aylsham, Norfolk NR11 6TY. Tel 01263 735 007Mobile 07990 840 816 Email liz @celticcoins.com Web www.celticcoins.com

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FIG 1

FIG 2

FIG 3

EUROPES NO.1 METAL DETECTING SPECIALI ST

EASY TERMSHOTLINE

01959 571255www.joanallen.co.uk

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the boysHISTORYWe are very pleased to announce the recent appointment of twonew validators to the team, Rob Lane (BobHoe) and John Mills(John gm). Rob and John first joined the UKDFD team as FindsAdvisers in December 2006, and over the past year they havemade a valuable contribution to the identification process.

John said:I am very pleased to accept my new role. UKDFDis already a fantastic resource and I hope that my involvementwill help lessen the burden on more established team members,thus allowing continual growth of the database.

Rob Johnohn

The UKDFD team are grateful for the manymessages of endorsement since the lastnewsletter. They were gratefully received.This is a short selection, some of whichhave been slightly edited . . .Many thanks to all at UKDFD forvalidating my finds. You provide anexcellent service . . .

I have found this site invaluable inrecording finds . . . and would like to say a

huge thank you to Rod and the team for thebest service I have ever encountered. At lastmy finds can be put to order, and all thisfrom my armchair! what more can one ask?Thanks, guys.

Thanks Rod for the ID on my Romanbronze. Im chuffed as I didnt know therewas Roman on my door step. PAS onlyhave one other Roman coin recorded in thisarea so this will make a second. Ill let my

FLO see it at our next meeting.

Big thanks for the wonderful service youhave provided during the year . . . thankyou so much.

A big thank you to the team at UKDFD- the time it takes from upload toidentification and on to the database isamazing. Do you get to sleep at all?

Thanks very much for all your help overthe past year. I cant believe how much Ihave learnt from reading your validationsand articles. I cant thank you and the teamenough for all your enthusiasm anddedication which has enabled me to takemy detecting to the next level ofunderstanding and have a little educationover what Im finding. It really is a proudfeeling to belong to something soworthwhile.

ITS MAGIC!There is a section on the site whereyou may post your images to see ifthey are eligible for recording. Alas,

and for many reasons, noteverything submitted is accepted.

The folded hammered coinposted by Tony Head (Magicman)and shown in FIG 1 is a case inpoint. He had rediscovered itlurking in his grot box and, as itwasnt it super condition, hethought that he would have a go atstraightening it. This is his accountof the operation.

My DIY on the coin involvedheating it up on the gas thenquenching in a small glass of water.This was done five times and eachtime the coin was opened a little bitwith two halves of a wooden clothespeg. When complete, I tidied up,went to watch television and fellasleep! The result of Tonys DIYlabours can be seen inFIG 2.

Tony says that when he looked inthe washing-up bowl next morning,

he was surprised to find a cut-quarter! FIG 3. He could onlyassume that the coin had beendeliberately bent to secure thesmaller piece. But why?

Unfortunately, although aninteresting discovery, the detail onthe coin wasnt clear enough forclassification and for that reasonwas not accepted for the database.

Recorders are reminded that theconvention is that the obverseimage is shown 1st and on the

left. The reverse is shown 2ndand on the right. You may, ifyou wish, show the two sides ofa coin together in the first field,as shown below.

Coin Display Convention

Obverse Reverse

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Please note thatmilled regalcoins, i.e. thosestruck after1662, are noteligible forrecording onthe database.

We make exceptions to thisgeneral rule for gold coins, andsilver coins up to 1816, providedthat they are in a minimum of Finecondition.

Non-regal tokens of all typesare, however, eligible.

MILLED COINS

TheRemember This?

You may recollect reading about WayneBurtons gold chain in a previousnewsletter. The story was highlightedbecause Wayne hadnt realised that itwas so old until after the UKDFDidentification when he was advised toreport it under the Treasure Act.

This he duly did and the article endedby saying that the item was currently atthe British Museum going through theprocess.

Wayne found the item in October2006 and is still waiting for a response.He said:

A disgruntled Wayne added:

I am not happy with the lengthof time its taking to go through the

system. We are now into 2008 and thereis no date set for the inquest. Ive askedthe FLO to chase it up and was told that

I could always contact the coronermyself!

Ivejust placed another item in the system . .. but Im not holding out for a quickresponse!

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The

When I was a lot younger I used to raid my mothers button jar looking for onethat was particularly large and colourful. Then Id string it on a long piece oftwine and tie the ends together. With the button in the middle and the stringheld in both hands it was twirled and twirled until a twist was built up in thestring. Id pull the string outward, let my hands come together and then pulloutward again. This was repeated was long as the string kept its twist. Thespinning button made a humming or buzzing noise as it twirled.

The lead disc whirligig often found by detectorists is sometimes discardedas just being a lead weight. The ones shown above have a saw-tooth edge,feathered pattern markings, and three piercings and are a crude form ofmusical instrument and toy. Similar to my button, when pulled taut betweentwo hands, the spinning of the disc produces a rhythmic humming (amplifiedby the toothed edges), which rises and falls with each pull of the cord.

Such toys have variously been home-made, not just from buttons, but morerecently from cardboard, these being given as a free gift in comics as late as the1950s-60s. With coloured panels printed on the cardboard the spinningproduced a visual as well as audible toy.

These musical toys have their origin in more ancient times when pigmetacarpals and metatarsals were drilled and threaded to serve the samepurpose. They have been found in Saxon to early post-medieval deposits inBritain. Lead saw-tooth medieval/post-medieval discs such as these have

been found during surveys of Thames foreshore deposits in the City ofLondon.

Whirling toys made of hammered lead musket balls or coins too old or thinto be of value have been excavated from early American towns, plantations,and military campsites. The sound of the whirling disk lends this folk toy itscommon name of buzzer, although it appears in English literature as early as1686 under the general name for spinning toys, whirligig. The scalloped edgeof our buzzer identifies it more particularly as a buzz saw toy. In past timesthe edge was often sharply cut into a sawtooth pattern, but a buzz saw with anyshaped edge will produce an impressive loud, whizzing noise when it reachesfull speed . . . . http://tinyurl.com/2syewm

Examples below kindly provided byDave Watson and D R Edwards

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CRAWFORDS METAL DETECTORS

UK leading shop for all your metal detecting needs

Phone: 01724 846621 - email

Because its more than a hobby, its a way of life!

www.crawfordsmd.co.uksales@crawfordsmd.co.uk

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Borrowed Times, the newsletter of the UKDFD, isproduced by John Winter with the help of the UKDFDTeam and distributed free to detectorists. The Editorwelcomesany kindof feedback and you may contacthim via email on john.winter@ukdfd.co.uk or by usingthe sites private messaging system.

THA NK YOU FORRECORDIN G WITH

THE UK DFD

Serious collector and researcher interested inbuying short-cross pennies of Henry II & III,

John & Richard IScottish hammered of William I, Alexander II

and 1st coinage of Alexander IIIIrish hammered issues of John,

both as Lord & King

Contact Jim:

COLLECTOR PRICES PAID

ALL DEALINGS IN STRICT CONFIDENCE

csazama@nc.rr.com

WANTED

Gar y Brun

ary firmly believes thath e r i t a g e b e l o n g s t oeverybody and not justG

those who have an ology.With a sixteen-year background

in the Event-Management andHospitality industry, hes beenworking with internet basedtechnology for many years.

Gary was the developer of the

first metal-detecting related PhPforums and his contribution wasfundamental to the establishment andoperation of most of the majorforums on the UK detecting scene.

At this moment in time, he runsone of the largest detecting forums onthe internet today, is a director of webdevelopment and trans - Atlanticvideo production companies.

He is also the proud father of two

children and has two horses, a dog,two cats and a Mother-in-Law allliving in the same house on his littlefarm in Norway. Bliss!

A MINI PROFILE

All the recorded information onUKDFD is publicly accessible

Barrel padlocksBuckles through the agesBuckles visual catalogueButton makersCoin weightsCrotal bellsGalley halfpenceGunter's chain

Harness pendantsNuremberg jetonsPapal bullaePocket sundialsSeal matricesThimblesTumbrels

andyou dont have to register to viewthe records.

The HOME PAGE containsgeneral information as well asreference articles on:

If you wish to record yourfinds on the database THENyou will have to register.It only takes a few minutes and

is absolutely free.

DO I HAVE TOREGISTER?

Mr s Polgor sBROOCHThose who have a wife as adetecting partner are indeedfortunate. On the first page youread about Gordons find and whathe had to say about his wife:

And here is one of her finds - asuperb example of a completepenannular brooch with an outsidediameter of 26mm. It is of circularcross-section, a little over 2mmdiameter, with knurled spherical

terminals of approximately 4mmdiameter. The undecorated wrap-around pin is highly arched,flattened at the point, and at 32mm,somewhat longer than the diameterof the brooch.

The brooch is that known as aFowler Type A2, which is datedbetween the 1st and 4th centuryAD. However, the highly archedpin of the present example wouldsuggest an early date in this range.

My dear wife, who is my

greatest detecting partner, hasmade some very nice finds andis probably a much keenerdetectorist than myself.

This AE3 of Constantine I (the

Great), struck at London, AD 320 isanother one of Mrs Polgors finds!

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