Crazy coins my neighbor found buried in backyard!

[Della]

Hi, my neighbor just posted these photos of some conglomeration of coins she found in her backyard…I recently joined here and wanted to see if anyone could help identify! I may need to go dig myself! Thanks

[MintErrors]

Della

In my opinion, one has to identify the original color of the coins. This will aid in possibly identifying the metal content. I would keep the find and location close to heart so you don't have a line of people lined up with shovels in hand.

It probably would be best to rent or borrow a metal detector and understand how to properly operate it. It would save time and effort. Keep the reason simple or tell them you lost a silver ring in the back yard.

The owner will need to determine whether to keep the coins or sell them. It's more dramatic as one large clump but if it's a mix of metal types, it may be difficult to assess the true value of the find. Breaking them up should be carefully documented with high resolution photos of the clump so if they are separated, the owner has provenance of what actually occurred after the find. Take plenty of photos.

I suggest identifying the coin type. IF these are coins and not bullion, coins would have dates and the coin value. Bullion should not say half dollar or other denomination.

I suggest going to ngccoin.com or pcgs.com and looking at the value of the coins at the grade of good (G4). That value is subjective since these are not graded, and probably should not be sent in due to the condition. It would cost a lot of money to get these encapsulated (slabbed). But, the general idea of what the coin value is at the LOWEST grade. But, those would be prices without any damage.

These coins will probably considered "environmentally damaged" meaning they have been in the ground. It severely degrades the coins collectability. BUT , the coins melt value - the value of the metal itself is still there.

IF the owner decides to break these apart, do so with knowledge. It may take a LONG time to do this carefully. They will probably ha e to be soaked with a solution that will not damage the coins or metal content. But if the owner does, they assume all risks.

I wouldn't get too excited at first. Be patient and as I suggested, keep the find sort of quiet, and those that you tell, let them know this as well. Don't instantly assume all you tell can give good advice. Facts are best, guesses are not.

Find some organization close to you that is willing to offer guidance for free. It could be a museum, pawn broker, reputable and trustworthy coin dealer. You can also contact some well known treasure salvage operations to see what advice they have.

If the plan is to transport these it may be wise to carefully pad a container that can support its weight. Don't use popcorn style packing as the foam can be crushed very easily.

This more than likely is a legitimate find. The only other thing one has to take into consideration is that someone in a garage was "experimenting" coin designs and these were his rejects. Counterfeiting has been around for a long time.

Tell the owner to take their time. The coins were in the ground for some time. They waited to be re-discovered for a while, so I suggest taking the time to decide how to proceed.

[Della]

Thanks. I shared with her and have referred her to a dealer already., and advised her to take down her post on the neighborhood page for obvious reasons! Since it’s such a large clump and environmentally damaged I told her she needed an expert opinion but I agree that this is an amazing find mixed metals and countries from the 19th and early 20th century! Would love to know the history/story behind it-if coins could talk! They have been in their house for more than 20 years and was surprised her son found it digging relatively close to the surface
Funny that I just joined here for my own little collection but will likely never have anything else this exciting to share but again, thanks for the input!

[occnumis2021]

Thanks. I shared with her and have referred her to a dealer already., and advised her to take down her post on the neighborhood page for obvious reasons! Since it’s such a large clump and environmentally damaged I told her she needed an expert opinion but I agree that this is an amazing find mixed metals and countries from the 19th and early 20th century! Would love to know the history/story behind it-if coins could talk! They have been in their house for more than 20 years and was surprised her son found it digging relatively close to the surface
Funny that I just joined here for my own little collection but will likely never have anything else this exciting to share but again, thanks for the input!

give us an update on how it turns out, if you yourself find out. i love closure.

fwiw, i recognize some of those coins and tbh, looks like a bunch of fake/novelty items. how they all came together is beyond me. thought it may be a big belt buckle for a moment but seems too big even for some of those boys.

mostly looks like swiss "coins."

edited to add, there should be "helvitia" or something on the front of a lot of them. the eagle reverses look like $2.5 usa gold coin design but dont' look gold at all.

[Della]

Well I will certainly update once I hear! Some
of them do say Helvita-I’ll attach some better pics We do live in an old neighborhood that was originally a plantation but the whole thing is crazy to say the least no matter. She found it strange how they were fused and thought they looked plated almost but I told her not to use any mutator acid or anything JIC

[Della]

Well she seems to have ascertained that it’s a decorative item from the 70s by checking a few sources, but she may still take it to the dealer to verify. It was fun. While it lasted! Back to my mystery quarter

[occnumis2021]

Well she seems to have ascertained that it’s a decorative item from the 70s by checking a few sources, but she may still take it to the dealer to verify. It was fun. While it lasted! Back to my mystery quarter

ty so much for the follow-up!

i was really hoping the best for her cuz i REALLY do love to read/hear/see about a good ground find.

[MintErrors]

Well she seems to have ascertained that it’s a decorative item from the 70s by checking a few sources, but she may still take it to the dealer to verify. It was fun. While it lasted! Back to my mystery quarter

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Bummer. But, the hunt still lives on.

Reminded me a little of the Forrest Fenn treasure hunt.

When people post items on the internet, they don't always go away. Places like the Internet archive (archive.org ) can scan a website and they store billions of web pages. Just a heads up. Yeah, i used to work in network security....

Happy hunting.