Old Gold from your Beach

[allmetalmode]

Gold Sovereigns on Our Beaches.

From 1817 to 1914 millions of sovereigns and half sovereigns went in to circulation containing 4 to 8gr of solid 22k gold and over those 97 years tens of thousands disappeared from circulation to the puzzlement and disappointment to the men at the Mint.
These were times of personal wealth at its highest that lead to more people being able to afford increased leisure time.And no form of leisure attracted greater crowds than sea bathing.
People of these times believed that bathing in sea water cured many ailments and diseases and skin complaints suffered by many of the aristocracy, and sea water spas were visited by monarchs and there courtiers.The upper classes following suit over the next few decades.I will not bore you with the full factual data but trust in me those visitors for example to Brighton rose from 7000 in 1818 to 20,000 in 1840 followed by crowds in other resorts.

I have in a previous article mentioned searching around groynes , these are the manmade wooden fence like structures on the beach that prevent sand shifting. I advise you to search on 6” Victorian maps for the location of these groynes of the time and concentrate your searching in these areas and not on the more recent groynes locations to find those gold coins of the time. These are were people would of rested from the breeze or sun propped up against them having picnics and chats, lots of coins and artefact were lost there and are waiting to be found, I say waiting as these gold items are much deeper than one thinks as gold is many times heavier than ordinary copper and silver coins and items so be prepared to dig deep.

My recommendation is once you have found these old groynes locations, many of which are still visible is to check with your detector the area and then dig and sieve to a depth of 2ft or check the spoil with you detector before then detecting your trench. What!!! Dig a two foot trench YES! You are now detecting in the region of equivalent to 3ft deep from the original beach level were you will be surprised to positive signals with you detector. Trust in me, you would not believe me if I told you how much gold I have found over the past years of beach detecting, and yes both half and full sovereigns. Do not limmet yourself tp groynes check all the other areas as mentioned in my prev post (Beach detecting My way.)

Local libraries, internet and post cards are a valuable tool with a hive of information that will lead you to old gold on the beaches.Study the archives for towns that may not today be popular but were then. Research your beach in the summer and go reap the rewards come autumn and spring when the tides and stormy weather further remove sand and reveal more depth that will lead to gold finds on your beaches.

Before I close an eyes only tip for you when you out and about on the beach, look at the buildings frontage away from today’s popular spots as many will be far too grand for the area today and is a good indication that once this was a popular spot patronised by holiday makers of the past;o)

JoeL

[fishy]

Thanks for taking the time to write that

I know of a nice little spot on a beach that I may go and dig up one day

As a fisherman the worms would be a bonus

[oliver]

I can remember some years back on Hayling Island they dug along the prom to do some work on the sea defences and uncovered lots of gold items from the Victorian times old gold rimmed specs and coins of all types Gold sovs the locals had a hay day it was reported on the box as so much stuff was uncovered.There must be a fortune hidden in our beaches just needs the weather or building works to get at it.I can also remember when sand was taken for the building of the hovercraft pad at Folkstone.The sand was dredged from the Goodwin sands a sand bank in the English Channel. Hundreds of Dutch 18 cent silver coins came in the sand and again the local beps were finding them.