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Metal Detecting Hobby Talk
        August 2020         Metal Detecting Hobby Talk News Brief                                             Volume 11 Number 125
Metal Detecting Hobby Talk Support The Hobby
I would like to point out to the News Brief readers that there are a number of organizations taking on the challenge against various types of legislation dealing with metal detecting and gold prospecting. MDHTALK's recommendation is to visit their website and give strong consideration to joining the fight. In some cases your support may be to send emails and / or write a letter to specific legislators or to provide funds to help with the fight. Here are the organizations and a link to their website.
Go to the Join The Fight MDHTALK Webpage to read more about each of these organizations

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August

What is a News Brief?
The news brief provides a brief look into any news event. The intent of the news brief is to provide you, the reader, with news clips on what was taking place in the hobby last month. To read the whole story select the Article Link or go to MDHTALK.org. There are more news stories placed on the MDHTALK website for July the news stories listed in the MDHTALK News Brief are just a portion of all the hobby related news reported the past month.  The news Brief is now available in Adobe PDF format, there is a link at the top of this webpage. The news brief is no longer emailed; it is only available on the MDHTALK website and can be downloaded.

The Website's featured article for this month is: Glossary of Metal Detecting Terms
Source: Varies locations   Download the Complete Glossary

Air Test: A test performed by moving various sized metal samples beneath the metal detector search coil to check the detector's features and target response. This test is not an accurate indicator of ground depth penetration capability.

Alkaline: A type of battery able to sustain longer periods of current drain with greater storage life when compared to the standard carbon-zinc type.

All Metal: Any operating mode or control setting which allows total acceptance of any type of metal targets. Usually associated with the Ground Balance mode.

Audio ID: See Tone ID

Audio Response: See Target Response

Auto Tune: Circuitry which continuously retunes the detector's threshold to the initial manually tuned audio level. The retuning rate following target rejection or drift can be preset or variable.

Back Reading: A false signal, when operating in the discriminate mode, caused by a rejected target coming within one inch of or contacting the search coil bottom.

Bench Test: An air test to determine at what approximate discriminate settings various metal samples are rejected or accepted. The test is conducted in a non-metallic area.

Black Sand: One of the most extreme components of nonconductive, negative ground minerals. Also called magnetite (Fe3O4) or magnetic iron oxide.

Body Mount: A configuration whereby the control housing is separated from the control shaft and fastened to the operator's body lessening arm fatigue and expanding usability for shallow water hunting. Also known as hip mount.
Hobby Related News

General U.S. and World Wide Hobby News
  • Man searching for brass clip lost on Melbourne Beach. Article Link
  • Jeweller Hides A Million Dollars Worth Of Treasure Around City For Quest. Article Link
  • Archaeology breakthrough: Divers 'literally shaking' at shipwreck treasure worth millions. Article Link
  • A piece of Brookings on the battlefield. Article Link
  • Striking gold! Amateur metal detector finds FOURTEEN extremely valuable coins on her FIRST hunt - and they could be worth thousands of dollars. Article Link
  • Man finds Haitian 'Phoenix Button' from 1800s on Washington state beach. Article Link
  • Locals lead gold prospecting association. Article Link
U.K. News
  • Oxfordshire is a top county for finding buried treasures. Article Link
  • Archaeology map pinpoints the BEST places in the UK to find buried treasure. Article Link
  • Archaeology bombshell: Researchers stunned by 'perfect' £300million shipwreck treasure. Article Link
  • CLA calls for responsible metal detecting following arrest and asks people to report any illegal activity. Article Link
  • Crews return to Brean beach after metal detector enthusiast finds WW2 explosive. Article Link
  • Treasure hunters find a trove of artefacts buried in their gardens after searching for valuables in the back yard during lockdown. Article Link
  • Archaeology breakthrough: Researchers left 'speechless' by 'magical' Iron Age treasure. Article Link
  • UK watchdog unveils project to set up school for treasure hunters. Article Link
  • Viking Trading Place Discovered In Norway By Student Archaeologist. Article Link
  • Norwegian Metal Detector Buff Makes Important Finds That Shed New Light on Viking History. Article Link
  • Man arrested after alleged illegal metal detecting along Hadrian's Wall in Northumberland. Article Link
  • Archaeological discoveries made by the public reach 1.5 million. Article Link
  • ‘It’s anyone’s guess as to what it was doing there’ - 7 treasures discovered in Suffolk and Norfolk. Article Link
  • How amateur archaeologists 'hit jackpot’ finding huge hoard of coins worth millions. Article Link
  • Medieval Pope’s seal discovered in Shropshire. Article Link
  • Excavators pretended to be from water board to trick their way into cricket club, members say. Article Link
  • Metal detector group unearths Roman coins at racecourse. Article Link
  • Theatre star stunned after ancient find with metal detector in Ayrshire. Article Link
  • Historic England thefts: Four held over artefacts taken from protected sites. Article Link, 2nd Article
North America Archaeology News
  • Humans reached the Americas 11,000 years earlier than previously thought, archaeologists discover. Article Link
  • Archaeologists date earliest known occupation of North America. Article Link
  • Archaeologists find new evidence of early St. Croix River residents. Article Link
  • Archaeology ongoing at the Vann House and Spring place Moravian Mission. Article Link
  • Excavations to Resume for 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Graves. Article Link
Other News Sources
  • American Digger Relic Roundup. For diggers and collectors of history. An hour long program every Monday Night at 9:00 PM eastern standard time. Join your hosts Butch Holcombe, Jeff Lubbert and Heath Jones as they explore the past. Learn more about Metal Detecting, Treasure hunting in all it's forms, and the preservation of history. July Pod Cast Link
  • Archaeology and Metal Detecting Magazine present the BIG metal detecting podcast. A weekly show bringing all areas of history together with our guests, news and much more. July Pod Cast Link
  • Coin World - Numismatic and Coin Collecting July News
  • Garrett Searcher July Issue
  • Gold Prospectors Assn of America (GPAA) - News on legal issues for the gold prospecting community July News
  • Minelab July Newsletter
  • Prospecting and Mining Journal (IMCJ) July News
  • The Archaeology and Metal Detecting Magazine The Archaeology and Metal detecting magazine are one of the lead online sites in their genre. Offering multiple platforms for Archaeological, Historical and metal detecting news, articles, research areas and much more. July News
  • 1715 Fleet Society August Newsletter
Jewelry Returns
  • Kennebunkport beachcombers retrieve slippery wedding ring. Article Link
  • Good news: Staten Island man helps recover lost chain in ocean. Article Link
  • Detectorist reunites Colchester soldier with ring lost in River Stour. Article Link
  • Elation’ as metal detecting man finds couple’s missing wedding ring. Article Link
  • Metal detector hobbyist helps woman recover heirloom necklace on Logan River Trail. Article Link
  • Scuba diver, metal detector hobbyist find lost ring in Iowa lake. Article Link
  • A newlyweds' happy ending: Metal-detecting team finds wedding ring at bottom of Lake Manawa. Article Link
  • Student reunited with grandfather's ring lost in lake - thanks to underwater metal detectorists. Article Link
  • Woman is reunited with her engagement ring thanks to a group of treasure hunters. Article Link
  • Metal Detecting team saves the day, finds lost wedding ring at the beach. Article Link
  • Auckland surfers lost wedding ring found by local after washing up on Orewa Beach. Article Link
  • Social-media mystery solved: Woman reunited with missing 1968 Parsippany HS class ring. Article Link
  • How underwater hunters found precious family heirloom lost in Colwick Country Park lake. Article Link
  • Merman Mike' finds lost $17,000 ring in Sacramento River. Article Link
W.W. Meteorite News
  • Largest meteorite in Germany discovered after sitting for decades in garden. Article Link
  • Asteroid news: Huge fireball shoots across US - 'It was massive'. Article Link
  • Huge alien rock trawled from sea off Devon coast may be a meteorite. Article Link
ArcArchaeological discoveries made by the public reach 1.5 million
by Laura Chesters Antiques Trade Gazette

According to the museum, the item that has been recorded as its 1.5 millionth find is a medieval lead papal bulla (a seal for authorising papal documents, such as edicts and indulgencies) of Pope Innocent IV (r.1243-54), that was found in Shropshire.

The items found by the public range from coin hoards to single items such as brooches.

The oldest items include prehistoric-worked flint from 700,000 years ago and the youngest include 20th-century military badges.

The museum said the ‘front line’ of the scheme in England is its network of 40 Finds Liaison Officers (FLOs) who are archaeologists trained to identify and record finds. They are all locally based covering the whole country, employed within museums and other heritage organisations, but overseen by the British Museum.

During the lockdown due to coronavirus metal-detecting and archaeology was predominantly prohibited so officers worked on the backlog of finds.

Michael Lewis, head of PAS and Treasure at the British Museum, said: “There is no doubt that these finds have transformed our understanding of the history and archaeology of England and Wales, and that of Britain more generally. Some of these items are spectacular and are finds of a lifetime. But even the smallest and most modest items offer clues about our history, so we encourage everyone who makes a find to continue to come forward.”

Hartwig Fischer, director of the British Museum, said “1.5 million finds is an historic milestone for the Portable Antiquities Scheme, and the British Museum wishes to thank everyone who has voluntarily come forward to record their discoveries so we can all learn more about our shared past.

The Treasure Act came into law in 1996 and The British Museum’s Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS)(delete) PAS was set up in 1997 so that archaeological objects found by the public can be voluntarily recorded.

Unless an object is defined as Treasure (under the Treasure Act), finders have no legal obligation to report them, but have been doing so voluntarily. The PAS scheme was extended in 2003 across the whole of England and Wales (thanks to a Heritage Lottery Fund grant).

The vast majority of these archaeological items have been discovered by metal detectorists and there has been a surge in the number of amateur treasure hunters using metal-detectors in recent years.

UK watchdog unveils project to set up school for treasure hunters
By Author IANS, TELANGANA PUBLICATIONS PVT. LTD

The new training and education organisation for metal detectorists is set to promote best practice when enthusiasts head out in search of buried treasure.

London: Historic England, the UK’s cultural watchdog, has unveiled its 50,000-pound ($62,840) project to explore setting up a new official school for treasure hunters.

The new training and education organisation for metal detectorists is set to promote best practice when enthusiasts head out in search of buried treasure, reports Xinhua news agency.

Working with archaeologist institute of detectoristss and others in the heritage sector, the proposed aims to provide training opportunities to promote responsible metal detecting and examine how metal detecting has been beneficial in the investigation of archaeological sites and landscapes.

On Saturday, metal detectorist Keith Westcott, who is behind the project, said the aim of this project is to establish a not-for-profit research and educational body for detectorists.

“This body would promote responsible metal detecting as a technique that contributes to the understanding, conservation and protection of the historic environment,” he said..

Historic England is an executive non-departmental public body of the UK government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

It is tasked with protecting the historic environment of England by preserving and listing historic buildings, scheduling ancient monuments, registering historic Parks and Gardens and by advising central and local government.
Event News
Metal Detecting & Gold Prospecting Events.
Now is the time to start planning and getting your club's 2020/21 hunt information on the web. The sooner it is out and available to the metal detecting community the greater the chance for people to see it and give your event some consideration.
Select here to View
the Complete Event Details for August

       
Add Your Event Information Here
  • August 08, 2020  (Two Days)
    Duryea, Pennsylvania
    37th Annual Black Diamond Treasure Hunt
    Black Diamond Treasure Hunters Club
  • August 15, 2020  (Two Days)
    New Concord, Ohio
    41st Annual Buckeye Championship Treasure Hunt
    Sponsored by Don & Bill Hayes
  • August 21, 2010  (One Night)
    Cisco, Texas
    Gray Ghost Nite Hunt
    Southwestern Treasures
  • August 25, 2020  (Three days)
    Athens, Michigan
    2020 Swing Dancing Detector Hunts
    LDMA-Lost Dutchman Mining Assn
  • August 29, 2020  (Two Days)
    Java Center, New York
    FMDAC Northern Chapter Open Hunt
    Federation of Metal Detector & Archaeology Clubs

Check out your event before going it may have been postponed or canceled.
 

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