REL C HUNTER

The magazine for the Searcher and Detectorist

Volume 1 Issue 2 July - August 2010

Hunting a Kentucky Battlefield The Mansfield Hoard A Roman in Norway World War II Dogtags Found
... and so much more!

Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

Welcome to Relic Hunter Magazine!

Were still making history. The first issue was read by over 5,000+ avid readers to this growing and profitable hobby. Were starting small but have BIG ideas. Well always bring you the best exciting content, from stories and videos about hunting in the field to the equipment we rely so much upon.
Jim Leonard Editor & Publisher

Table of Contents of Main Articles: Beach Hunting on Brighton Beach Hunting The Battle of Perryville, Kentucky The Mansfield Hoard A Roman in Norway Odyssey Marine Exploration Court Case World War II Dog Tags Returned Worldwide Miscellaneous Articles The Lord of the Rings

Author Nuke em Steve Moore John Kirk Per Sibe Jim Leonard Various Various Shantel Grace Gary Brun

Country United Kingdom United States United Kingdom Norway United States Various Various United States Norway

Metal Detectives University

CALL FOR ENTRIES - CALL FOR ENTRIES

Share with the World and send me your hunting story along with a few photos. Ill personally make sure they are placed within the next issue. Email your articles to: jleonard@jpl-designs.com
Cover photo by Brian McKenzie Photography and Graphic Design, Garrett Metal Detectors Munster House, Perryville, Kentucky, USA
Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

Who says you cant read Relic Hunter whenever and wherever you want?
Let the other publishers bash digital magazines. They have a lot to learn! While Ive heard it said that you can only read digital magazines only at a desk and they cant be read like a paper magazine, like in a bathroom. Well thats just not true, as you can see in the photo, Relic Hunter can be read just about anywhere. As an example, can your printed magazine provide you with a video? Not hardly, unless they opted to send along a DVD with the publication, but then your subscription price would probably double, due to the mailing and production costs for the video. However, they might print the web address where you can view it online, but guess what? You just went online to view their suggested video, opps!!! Just for fun, send us some photos of the most bizarre places where you read Relic Hunter Magazine and well publish your photos.

I R ea d

Relic Hunter Magazine

Weve made so many great friends on Facebook. What a great place to share ideas, show finds and create groups pertaining to this hobby.

ine

az

Reli
4

Sign up on our NEW group listing on Facebook. Well be hosting a contest soon and offering some good prizes that have been donated by some generous suppliers.

Hu

Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

nter Mag

I hit the beach, again and again.

By Nuke Em, East Sussex Well this is it for this month, today I hit Brighton Beach again. Although the tide and weather is starting to change the beach again I managed another 2 silver rings , a dross ring , a dross bangle and 20.23p in change and a 2 and 5 Danish Kroner coins. Almost managed to get to 300 so far for the year! This is how much I have had off the beach this year, although I have changed lot of the lower coinage from the January finds to pound coins. _________________ 2010 tally so far, Land finds: Roman Grots = 4 Beach cash = 299.38p For E.T. 2 (Target 1000) gold rings = 3 silver rings = 9 silver chain = 3 silver ear ring = 1 Uses = Minelab E.trac , X.P. Deus

Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

The Battle of Perryville, Kentucky

With my bags packed and detectors safely secured, I left my home in Texas and headed off to Kentucky. There, I was going to meet up with Dave and Linda Edwards to spend some time digging up some American Civil War relics and just having a few days away from the office. Heres a brief history of the battle around Perryville, Kentucky, without getting into too much detail, but it provides a basis for what we discovered. The first shots of the battle were fired early on the morning of October 8, 1862. The bloodiest Civil War battle to take place in Kentucky happened in and around the town of Perryville after the Confederate Armys defeat at the battle of Shiloh. Confederate troops controlled all of Kentucky east of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad (roughly along todays I-65) by the fall of 1862. Their forces were met by Federal Army troops under General Don Carlos Buell near Perryville on October 8. Both sides were desperate for water, as a severe drought raged in the area during this time. Finding that there were algae-covered pools of water in the otherwise dry bed of Doctors Creek, troops from the 10th Indiana Infantry advanced to take advantage of them. They encountered the forward men of the 7th Arkansas and some shots were exchanged. At 2 a.m., Buell and Gilbert, the III Corps commander, ordered newly promoted Brig. Gen. Phil Sheridan to seize Peters Hill; Sheridan started off with the brigade of Col. Daniel McCook.
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We decided to hunt a privately owned area to see what could be found.

By Steve Moore, Marketing Communication & Advertising Manager, Garrett Electronics Historical information provided by Jim Leonard

Sheridan seized the hill, driving the Arkansans back to the main line of their brigade, but continued to push across the creek. Liddells brigade could not check the momentum of Sheridans thirsty soldiers and Buckner, Lidells division commander, was ordered by Polk not to reinforce him, but to pull his brigade back.

Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

Major General Don Carlos Buell,

Major General Alexander M. McCook,

Major General Leonidas Polk. known as Fighting Bishop

General Braxton Bragg

Polk was concerned about starting a general engagement to the west of the Chaplin River, fearing he was outnumbered. Meanwhile, on the Union side, a nervous Gilbert ordered Sheridan to return to Peters Hill. For the preceding few days, Braxton Bragg had been deceived by the diversion launched by Sills against Frankfort, assuming that it was the major thrust of Buells army. He wanted Polk to attack and defeat what he considered to be a minor force at Perryville and then immediately return so that the entire army could be joined with Kirby Smiths. Polk sent a dispatch to Bragg early that morning that he intended to attack vigorously, but he quickly changed his mind and settled on a defensive posture. Bragg, angered that he was not hearing the sounds of battle, rode from Harrodsburg to Perryville to take charge, arriving about 10 a.m. and establishing his headquarters at the Crawford house on the Harrodsburg Pike. Bragg was appalled at the condition of Polks battle line, which contained gaps and was not properly anchored on the flanks. As he rode in, he observed some of McCooks I Corps troops north of town, but he assumed that the primary threat continued to be on the Springfield Pike, where the action against the III Corps had taken place early that morning. (He had no knowledge of Crittendens II Corps approaching on the Lebanon Pike.) He gave orders to realign his army into a north-south line and prepare to attack en echelon. Cheathams division marched north from town and prepared to open the attack on the Union leftwhich Bragg assumed to be on the Mackville Roadbeginning a large left wheel movement. Two brigades from Patton Ander8 Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

sons division would then strike the Union center and Buckners division would follow up on the left. Another of Andersons brigades, commanded by Col. Samuel Powell, would attack farther to the south along the Springfield Pike. The large clouds of dust raised by Cheathams division marching at the double quick north prompted some of McCooks men to believe the Confederates were starting to retreat, which increased the surprise of the Rebel attack later in the day. By the afternoon of October 8, most of Buells army had arrived. They were positioned with McCooks I Corps on the left from the Benton Road to the Mackville Road; Gilberts III Corps in the center, on the Springfield Pike; Crittendens II Corps on the right, along the Lebanon Pike. The vast majority of action during the battle would be against McCooks corps. Because of an unusual acoustic shadow, few sounds from the battle reached Buells headquarters only 2 miles away; he did not exert effective control over the battle and committed no reserves until late in the day. Much of the fighting was centered near the Chaplin River and on Doctors Creek, where a Confederate division caught Union troops fetching water. Although more than 72,000 troops were stationed about the area, the actual battle of Perryville involved some 20,000 Union troops and 16,000 Confederates. Men from 21 states fought in this battle and 90 cannons were fired during the day. By days end, some 1,422 soldiers had perished and another 5,534 were wounded.

Hunting the Battle of Perryville, Kentucky

Steve Moore searches near an old rock wall built before the Civil War.

Dave Edwards is all grins after finding literally a handful of musket balls and mini balls in this Perryville area field.

Photos by Brian McKenzie Linda Edwards holds a knapsack buckle she has just dug.

Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

Hunting the Battle of Perryville, Kentucky

Grape shot, two musket balls and a three-ring mini ball recovered near Perryville battlefield. Dave holds an iron gun tool and a recently dug buckle.

Photos by Brian McKenzie

This Perryville relic collection holds (top to bottom) a smooth Confederate Enfield bullet, a small pistol ball, two mini balls, a suspender buckle, a brass ring and a percussion cap box.
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The artifacts in this display case all came from the hill above our camp. The items in the top two rows include a tent ring grommet, a Kentucky State Seal medallion, a button made in the UK by the Wallace company (circa 18001828), three bullets and two uniform rivets. Below the rusted pocketknife are a spoon handle, buckle, part of a Confederate cavalry spur and, at the bottom, a bayonet scabbard tip.

Some of the Perryville Civil War artifacts found by Steve Moore include mini balls, musket balls, buck and ball shot, melted lead, iron nails, horseshoes, a harness ring and the head to an iron camp tool.
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The Nottinghamshire Detecting And Recovery Team (John, Dave & Kevin) was off to new field. The forecast was 3 degrees, socked in with fog simply perfect!
By John Kirk As usual, we were checking in on our on-line detecting club, our internet based club which we use as part of our hobby. I checked an old maps link and found an 1860`s map of the area that we were intending to search the next day and noticed a strangely shaped field boundary. This was mentally noted and thought no more of it. We arrived at the site the next morning in thick fog, icy roads and the field was frozen solid. I tested the ground with my spade to see if it was possible to dig and to my relief, it was only frozen for 2 or 3 inches deep. Fortunately for us, we agreed to go ahead with the search. After a couple of hours of finding the usual shotgun cartridges and pieces of lead etc, we arrived at a hedgerow and switched our machines off. We were ready for a welcome break from the elements. Dave produced his finds so far, a very poor selection, and sarcastically asked if we would find anything good today! I responded with optimism, saying that you have to believe that there are still worthwhile finds to be made. Suddenly, the memory of the odd shaped field appeared in my head and we quickly decided to head straight for that area. Within a few minutes, I got a definite signal from my Explorer, which showed a coin was likely. After several minutes of frantic digging, the biggest hammered coin Id ever seen appeared. I realized it must be a Groat!! Within another few minutes, 2 more had surfaced and suddenly I didnt feel cold anymore. Then, to my amazement, my Explorer registered a gold target. After moving the first load of frozen earth, the signal
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got ever stronger, and a shiny yellow metal object caught my eye. At first glance I thought, Damn, all that hard work for a bottle top. How wrong I was. Closer inspection of the crumpled object revealed a king standing on a ship, holding a sword and shield. I had found a gold hammered coin. I quickly realized that this was no ordinary group of coins and thoughts of a hoard began to spring to mind. Being the generous type, I shouted the others over and showed them the 4 coins and suggested that they have a go as I had been so fortunate. To our absolute amazement, Dave switched his Explorer on and a gold target was immediately

registered under his coil. A second gold hammered coin was recovered, which was in mint condition. Kevs Sovereign yielded yet another one. By the end of the morning, the three of us had recovered 7 gold Nobles, Edward III and Richard II, plus approximately 3 dozen Groats, a couple of Half-Groats and a few Pennies. This could only be a scattered hoard as the majority of the coins were in very good condition, and they were all found in a relatively small area. It wasnt a bad day after all!!

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Minelab Success Stories

At Minelab we have an exciting new competition running on our new look website. By submitting your Minelab Success Story and pictures of your favourite finds you will automatically receive an exclusive Minelab Success Story key ring. Also, you will go into the running for the all new Find of the Month competition, with a monthly prize of a Minelab backpack stuffed full of accessories up for grabs. Its open to all Minelab users, so hurry and log on now to www.minelab.com/emea/ consumer/success-stories/submit-a-story and share your experience.

Success Stories are just one part of the rapidly growing Minelab online community. Dont miss out on any of the action, register and become a member of www.minelab.com today!

Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

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Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

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Relic Hunter July - August, 2010 19

A Roman in Norway

By Per Sibe
It was an early morning this Easter, and the date was the 1st of April. As normally this time a year up here north, the rain was hammering down. It was even a bit of snow in it. But after a very long and snowy winter I really wanted to do some detecting. My friend PK and I had agreed on taking a trip out, if the weather was not too bad. So I called him and asked him for his thoughts about the weather. And my friend was very clear about his thoughts. They were very similar to mine. The weather was just too bad, so we agreed to look at it a bit later during the day. Around noon the rain took a break for a little while. No time for a long hunt, but if I was lucky I could make a short trip to one of the nearest farms, before the rain returned. Tried to call PK again but he was not answering my call. His loss I told myself as I jumped in to the car and drive over to the farm. Fifteen minutes later and I was ready for some detecting out on the field. It was really muddy, foggy and wet, but I really want to do some detecting now. Ground balanced the detector and off I was. My first signal turned out to be an old button. Took away the worst mud and put it in my finds bag. Then a Norwegian 1 ore from 1896 showed up. And then I started to pick foil and rusty nails for a long time.
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I had just started to rain a little again, and I was studying a small pin I had found when my cell phone starts ringing. It was PK who returned my call. He had been busy working on his computer and had not heard my call. Now he wondered to come over. Well, as the rain was coming back I told him that soon I was going to get back to my car and call it the day. So if he gets back to his computer work, I would pick up a silver coin and then go home again. Dont know if he liked the idea, but he wished me luck about the silver find and hang up. Did I find a silver coin on this rainy and cold day? Oh yes... I did. Had just started my walk back to the car, funny how far away you can get when you are busy detecting, when I got a nice silver signal in my headphones. And, there it was. A sweet little coin. Got some dirt of it and understand that this must be an old one. Could it be a roman coin? It sure looks like one. I know that the guys in the United Kingdom find a lot of them. But the Romans were never here in Norway. But the Scandinavian Vikings travelled a lot some hundred years later. Anyway, if it really was a roman coin, I had found it in the middle of a field in Norway. It was truly going to be a rare find.

I just had to find out. No more detecting that day. Could not get home quick enough. Some clean water, a couple of photos and then I put the pictures out on Norwegian Metal detecting Society forum. And then the first problem showed up. It was April fools day, so no one believed that I had found it. A lot of people said they guess it was a roman even that it was in very bad shape, but they where not sure that I had found it. They just thought I was joking with them. But after a while people started to understand that I was serious about my find. And then it starts to be busy on the forum. This was not the every day find.

I also mailed the pictures to Museum of Cultural History, University of Oslo, and ask if they where interested in the coin (the laws of Norway say that all coin finds, from before 1650 belong to the government). And they were really interested. So, some days later I was on my way to Oslo to deliverer the coin to the archaeologists. Turned in to be a great day. They really took time to explain a lot to me about old coins and the history behind them. I have never in my life seen and held so many old coins at the same time. I learned a lot of history that day. That was for sure. Some weeks ago they also sent me a letter and told me that my coin was from Emperor Trajan and the period was from 103 to 111 AD. There was also a long explanation how they had found it out, and a lot of other interesting things about it. Anyway, it was very special to find this roman coin. I believe I never will forget finding this one. But now its June, the sun is shining and I better get out and do some detecting.

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Tired Old Field

by Tony Hunt Managed a short winkleing trip this morning before work called yet again. It was hot and ruddy hard work and had to put up with 50 young Heifer calves fresh out to grass and full of the joys of spring and cow piles were everywhere. It took us an hour of riding around searching out a field that wasnt long grass waiting to be silaged or freshly germinated maize which we wont go on so as to preserve our good farmer relations, but we decided in the end to revisit what we thought was a tired old field, that we have been hammering all winter and look what turned up.

Found it using Dess ferrous 2 tone set up which I have been playing around with and Auto +3 sens.

Members gather for the Georgia Research & Recovery Club Hunt

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No Detector, No Problem
Victor and Tricia Deaton know that it doesnt always take a metal detector to discover a treasure. While on private property, Victor had gotten permission to hunt near a creek bed in Bartow County, Georgia for some American Civil War relics. This area has provided some great war relics as the Northern troops camped during their march to Marietta and the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain. Tricia had followed along, watching Victor hunt and was looking on the ground for some plants that grew in the lush area. Tricia, looking down at a the base of a large tree, noticed a moss covered, what appeared to be a round rock and decided to investigate further. She pulled and lifted it away from the tree and discovered that it was shaped as a bowl. And, inside the stone bowl were 3 rounded stones that must have been used in the grinding bowl. At home, Tricia cleaned up her find. By-the-way, Victor didnt find anything of importance with his metal detector. They brought the stone bowl and grinding stones to the last NGRHA meeting, where she won find of the month for artifacts. Well Done Tricia!

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Georgia was inhabited by many tribes of people, way before the Spanish and English explored penetrated the interior of the New World. The natives that lived near the area where the stone bowl was found were the Etowah. According to archeologists, they estimate that the Etowah migrated to this region of Georgia sometime around 200 BC - 600 AD. The Etowahs left some fantastic mounds and city structure outlines that are worth the visit should you come to Georgia.

Etowah Indian Chief at the Cartersville Museum

Etowah Indian Mounds, Cartersville, Georgia

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Cleaning up at Coffs Harbour Australia

Cheers mates! Wand Waver here, and this is my story of when I got down to one of my favorite beaches. To my joy, there was a nice cutaway near the high tide line. Ive never seen anything like it before , I couldnt move the coil without getting multiple signals. I didnt dig any junk, but every target was a coin - (OK there was a little junk) Heres a list of finds: $2 x 27, $1 x 19, 50c x 11, 20c x 20, 10c x18 , 5c x 9, 5 x penny , 3 halfpennies, 3 sixpences, 2c x16 , 1c x15 , 8 x keys , 1 foreign, 2 quarters 1905 &1920, and a few bits of jewelry. Thats about 150 targets in 2 visits. My back ached for hours afterwards but Im still smiling.

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Finding Celtic Gold

Karl Jackson, Worcestershire, UK

Well, what can I say? Its been said that a photograph is worth thousand words, so heres a few from my hunt. I finally got out for around 2 hours today and Id say it was one of my best 2 hours spent hunting. The main find was coin a Celtic Stater. Other items recovered were three bits of silver and a ring. According to an old book I dragged out British Iron Age Coins in the British Museum, the coin appears to be an early Uninscribed A Gold of the Westerham type. Hope you enjoy the photos.

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In The News:
First Gold Coin Struck in the Name of an English King to be Sold by Spink
The UK auction firm of Spink has announced the upcoming sale of an AngloSaxon gold Shilling of King Eadbald of Kent dating from c.620-635. This is the first gold coin struck in the name of an English King and a rare and important piece of English history. Found near Deal Kent in 2010, this coin will be sold at auction and is expected to fetch upwards of 8,000. This type was long known to be amongst the earliest of Anglo-Saxon gold coins with a single example present in the important Crondall hoard found in Hampshire in 1828 and dating from c.670. The conclusive attribution of these coins to king Eadbald of Kent, reigned 616640, though was only made in 1998. This followed the emergence of new finds which enabled the obverse inscription to be confirmed as avdvarld reges, and translated as of King Audvarld. The name auduarldus appears in Bedes Historia Ecclesiastica completed in 731 in which he wrote about king Eadbald of Kent. Given this and the presence of one of these coins in the Crondall hoard, the attribution to Eadbald is now accepted While the Kentish Shilling or Thrymsa seems to have sought to match the Merovingian Tremissis, the design of this coin is peculiarly Anglo-Saxon using neither motifs found on Merovingian coins nor seeking to copy Roman types. In common with some other coins (e.g. the so called Witmen and Londiniv/Londeniv types), this coin has an inscription on the reverse. This can be clearly read on a example in the Ashmolean Museum as containing the word londenv indicating London as the mint or die source for these coins all of which share the same obverse die.

The real significance of these coins though is in the obverse inscription naming the historical figure of king Eadbald. This is exceptional for a coin of this period and is only certainly found again at the end of the seventh century with the Sceattas of Aldfrith of Northumbria (685-705). As such the Eadbald Thrymsa is the earliest coin issued in the name of an English king. Eadbald succeded Aethelberht as king of Kent in 616. Aethelberht is principally remembered for having accepted St. Augustine into his kingdom and his subsequent conversion to Roman Christianity. It seems, according to Bede, that after his accession Eadbald fell foul of the young Church, rejecting Christianity, ejecting its Bishops and incurring the wrath of the Church committing such fornication as the Apostle Paul mentioned as being unheard of even among the heathen, in that he took his fathers (second) wife as his own. Whatever Eadbald did, this situation did not last for he repented and was duly baptized, rejecting his wife and thereafter favouring the Church within his kingdom. As to the date of these named Thrymsas or Shillings of Eadbald, the presence of Christain iconography dates them to after his conversion and a date to between 620 and 635 is thought appropriate.
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In The News:
Florida deep-sea explorers are appealing a judges ruling that 17 tons of treasure

recovered from a sunken Spanish galleon belongs to Spain. Tampa-based Odyssey Marine Exploration filed an opening brief Monday with the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta. At issue is ownership of an estimated $500 million in silver coins and other artifacts salvaged from the shipwreck three years ago. Last year a federal judge in Tampa ruled that Spain is the rightful owner of the treasure from the navy frigate Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes y las Animas. But Odyssey argues it is entitled to most of the loot because historical records show the vessel was on a commercial mission when it sank under fire in 1804.

Spain formally laid claim to a shipwreck that yielded a $500 million treasure, saying it has proof the vessel was Spanish. Officials demanded the return of the booty recovered last year by a U.S. deepsea exploration firm, saying the 19th-century shipwreck at the heart of the dispute is the Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes a Spanish warship sunk by the British navy southwest of Portugal in 1804 with more than 200 people on board. Tampa, Fla.-based Odyssey Marine Exploration had announced in May 2007 that it had discovered the wreck in the Atlantic and its cargo of 500,000 silver coins and other artifacts worth an estimated $500 million. At the time, Odyssey said it did not know which ship it was, and flew the treasures back to Tampa without Spains knowledge, from an airport on the British colony of Gibraltar on Spains southwestern tip. The Spanish government filed evidence in a Tampa federal court to support its claim. We are talking about the remains of a Spanish navy vessel and the human remains of Spanish naval servicemen who died on board which have been illegally disturbed, Culture Ministry Director General Jose Jimenez said. It is the property of the Spanish navy, government and people, and we want it all back, said Adm. Teodoro de Leste Contreras, who runs a naval museum owned by the ministry. Washington-based lawyer James Goold, representing the Spanish government in the case, said U.S. Judge Mark Pizzo will convene the two parties to review the case before de30 Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

order proved the ship and cargo definitely were Spanish property. Spain has not abandoned or otherwise relinquished in any way its ownership of Mercedes, Spains petition said. Odyssey said it would issue a statement after reviewing Spains claim. But company officials have said in the past that they believe the court will award them most of the treasure. Naval and coin experts say they have proof that the treasure, now held in a warehouse in Tampa, came from the Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes. The coins included gold doubloons, or pieces of eight, minted in 1803 in Lima, Peru, bearing the image of Spains King Carlos IV, ministry coin expert Carmen Marcos said. Admiral Teodoro de Leste Contreras, who runs a naval museum The Mercedes exploded and sank owned by the ministry, speaks during a press conference in in a naval battle as it sailed back to Madrid. Spain from South America. Spains claim said artifacts on the seaciding who gets to keep the treasure. bed, their distribution and other characterGoold said at a Madrid news conference istics, as well as artifacts taken by Odyssey, that he expected Odyssey would keep not further identify the site as the remains of a penny of the salvage. Mercedes. Spain argues that the entire treasure Odyssey also said the ship was probably should be returned because naval vesthe Mercedes after Pizzo last month forced sels remain the property of the nation that the company to disclose information on the flagged them, regardless of where they lie, salvage, including the identity of the ship under the principle of sovereign immunity. and its location. Goold said Spains evidence based on material provided by Odyssey under court
More information about Odyssey Marine Exploration and the latest updates on the court case can be found at: http://www.shipwreck.net/ or just click on their logo.
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In The News:

Sixty-six years later, a Syracuse soldiers dog tag is found in Italy where he died.
By Sean Kirst / The Post-Standard Syracuse, NY - Timing is everything, as the Vargo brothers understand. They often reflect on how 20 or 30 years ago, before the rise of the Internet, it would have been difficult for someone with a metal detector in Italy to trace a World War II dog tag to the hometown of the American who wore it. It was easier for Marco Ballini, an Italian researcher. Early this year, he dug a trench in a forest near the beach at Anzio, the starting point for a harrowing 1944 Allied campaign. Ballini was searching for battlefield relics. He found what he calls a piastrino, or the dog tag of a soldier. It carried the name of John P. Vargo, an American from Syracuse. Through the Internet, Ballini learned that Vargo had died during the war. Ballini kept going. He found an e-mail address for the Onondaga County Veterans Service Agency. He sent a message that outlined his discovery to Bob McLean, the agency director. McLean opened the phone book, spotted several families named Vargo, and wrote each of them a letter. In that way, in time for Memorial Day, the dog tag made it home. Its just a little piece of metal, said John Paul Vargo, of Liverpool, whose father named him for the uncle killed at Anzio. But I think the sacrifice it represents will resonate for veterans and their families. His younger brother, Joe, received one of the letters from the county. With McLeans help, Joe made contact with Ballini, who mailed the dog tag to the Photo courtesy of John P. Vargos familyAn undated photograph of John P. Vargo, a soldier from Syracuse killed in May 1944 in Italy at the battle of Anzio during World War II. Vargos. It retains small dents, which the brothers see as its source of power. This was touching (John Vargos) body at the moment that he died, said Joe, 56. He gave
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the dog tag to his eldest brother, John, a Vietnam veteran. The Vargos assume the tag was torn from their 28-year-old uncle by the German artillery blast that killed him, and that it was buried with other artifacts of combat. The younger John Vargo, 58, remains appreciative that Ballini cared enough to do a search. John and Joe had no chance to meet their uncle, who died before they were born. Their father, Andrew Vargo, never said much about the death of his brother. Andrew and the elder John were among seven siblings of that generation six boys and a girl raised in Syracuse amid the Great Depression. As young men, the six Vargo brothers served in World War II. They had grown up in the Hawley-Green neighborhood. Their parents died young, causing the children to be placed in an orphanage or sent into foster care. After that childhood tumult, John and Joe wonder if the military offered stability for their father and uncles. If so, it came with high risk. John was killed. His brother George lost part of his right leg in France, a wound that caused him pain for the rest of his life. Another brother, Joseph, was a military career man who retired in Texas. Before he died in 1983, he made sure that the body of John Vargo was removed from Italy and buried at a military cemetery at Fort Sam Houston.

In Syracuse, John, Joe and the rest of their family heard little about the uncle killed at Anzio. My father had (Johns) Purple Heart, but it was always in the closet, John said. You didnt talk about it. That silence fit the stoic nature of that generation, the Vargos say. After enduring a harsh childhood and going off to war, those who returned werent interested in looking back. Even now, John and Joe dont know much about their uncle. Family stories say John Vargo often rode a motorcycle. The younger John recalls going into the Teall Market as a child, where his appearance would trigger something wistful in the man behind the counter. The clerk had known and admired the older John Vargo, and he made a point of telling the boy how his uncle was a tough guy. The Vargos would see the name of their uncle on a wall at the Onondaga County War Memorial, and their father held onto the Purple Heart, awarded after John was killed. That was as much as the nephews knew until a few months ago, when McLean sent his letter to Joe Vargo, executive director of Partners for Education & Business in Syracuse. Joe quickly made e-mail contact with Ballini, who described himself as impassioned of the search with the metal detector. Ballini explained, step by step, how he found the relic. He expressed delight in making contact with the family, and he agreed to mail the piastrino to Joe. The dog tag preserves the identity of the man who carried it, and Joe knew immediately where it belonged. To him, his brother John is walking proof of the kind of loyalty that matters. Their father rarely spoke of what he lost in the war, but he made a lasting gesture that said everything: He loved John Vargo enough to give his first-born son his name.
Photo by Nick Lisi

John Vargo, at left, with his brother, Joe Vargo, holds the Purple Heart and dog tag of their uncle, WWII veteran John P. Vargo, in the Memorial Hall at the Onondaga County War Memorial in Syracuse.
Relic Hunter July - August, 2010 33

In The News:

Walter Reuter III, 75, of Edgeworth, holds his fathers dog tag, which was found on a World War II battlefield in Germany.
Lindsay Carroll, Pittsburgh Post Gazette

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Walter Reuter III was 10 when he last saw his father. For years, he didnt know the circumstances of his death, only that Walter Reuter Jr. had gone missing in action in Germany in October 1944. Mr. Reuter, an architect from Edgeworth who is now 75, never expected to learn more about what happened to his father, a private in the 9th Infantry Division during World War II. But that changed when Nancy Fraker of Richmond, Va., began to research her uncle, a staff sergeant who also went missing in action during the war. It turned out her uncle and Mr. Reuters father likely had died together in battle. Ms. Frakers research also helped turn up something else valuable. Mr. Reuter received one of his fathers dog tags in the mail earlier this month from a German who had found it using a metal detector in Hurtgen Forest.
Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

Bill Wade photographer

For Mr. Reuter, the 1-by-2-inch tag, dangling from a thin metal chain, has spiritual significance. It is a memorial for a family left with no remains and no gravestone. He plans to leave the dog tag to his brother Davids son, the only son in the family who will continue the Reuter name. Mr. Reuter said he has the most vivid memories of his father with him and his siblings -- his sister Robin was 9 and his brother David was 3 at the time. He remembered his father as a charming, relaxed man who used to read books like Treasure Island to him. Losing his father was a cruel blow, he said. It was just a big hole in my life. You get a taste of something wonderful, then its taken away, Mr. Reuter said.

Pvt. Reuter and his three comrades never returned from their mission. They were reported missing in action on Oct. 14, eight months after Pvt. Reuter had enlisted. The Army could not search for his remains right away because of continued enemy activity. It found no listings for Pvt. Reuter or the other men on his mission in German prisoner of records. In 1945, the Army had still not found the men and a major general sent a letter to Pvt. Reuters wife, Roberta, informing her that her husband was presumed to be dead.

Still hoping

Missing in action
In spring 1944, Walter Reuter Jr. came home from boot camp. After training in Camp Blanding in Florida for two months, he spent about a week with his family, hosting parties for friends and resting at his Bexley, Ohio, home with his wife and three children. Mr. Reuter said he remembered riding on the train to Pittsburgh, where his father grew up, to stay with relatives. He recalled his father putting him to bed the night before he headed off to war. I remember that I was really inconsolable that he was leaving, Mr. Reuter said. My emotions were exactly correct, in hindsight. The 33-year-old Pvt. Reuter was sent to Germany and went on to fight in what would be one of the longest and most brutal battles of World War II -- the Battle of Hurtgen Forest. Fought from September into February over cold, wet ground in the heavily forested area near Germanys border with Belgium, the battle claimed 33,000 U.S. casualties and 28,000 German casualties. In October 1944, Pvt. Reuter was sent on a mission to attack two German pillboxes -- types of concrete bunkers used to protect soldiers from enemy fire. He and three other men from Company C left with instructions to destroy the bunkers in Raffelsbrand crossing, about 5 miles southeast of Aachen, Germany. The Germans fought back, and the company was hit with mortar and small arms fire.

In a return letter dated Sunday, April 14, 1946, she wrote: Would you mind terribly if I aired some of my bitterness to you? My husband was such an exceptional man. Mrs. Reuter pleaded for the Army to continue helping her search for her husband or his remains. As they did not seem to know any more about it in 1945 than they did in 1944, Mrs. Reuter wrote, I am still hoping that he might be alive somewhere. The only possibility, she wrote, was that he would have amnesia. Could the major general tell her if there were any unidentified amnesia patients? Did any soldiers in his platoon come back from the mission? And did the War Department ever consider that the dead soldiers -- the forgotten ones, remembered just once a year on Memorial Day -- deserved to come back home alive and be honored with the same medals and college educations and privileges that returning soldiers benefitted from? They had offered her a flag. In the same letter she wrote that at first, she felt indignant about thinking she could exchange her husband for a flag. But maybe the children would think the army really thought something of their Daddy if you sent it, she wrote. So please consider this a request. On Jan. 8, 1952, the Army wrote its last letter to Mrs. Reuter to say it never found her husbands remains. Still, Mrs. Reuter, who never remarried, tried to find out what happened to her husband. She found a Walter Reuter in Mexico who had become a photographer. When her daughter, Robin, lived in Acapulco, she visited Walter
Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

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Reuters widow. The widow had pictures of her Walter Reuter, but it wasnt the Pvt. Reuter who went missing in Hurtgen Forest. Mrs. Reuter died 11 years ago, without ever knowing what had happened to her husband.

The Hunt for the dog tag

Three years ago Nancy Frakers sister pulled an old picture out of her attic. Their uncle, Staff Sgt. Raymond Carlyle Blanton, smiled at the camera in his pressed uniform. Sgt. Blanton went missing in action on Oct. 14, 1944. Finding the photo made them think about their uncle. He was 19 when he went missing, and it devastated Ms. Frakers mother. Ms. Fraker, 58, decided to search for her uncles remains. She obtained her uncles personnel records and found he was killed during a mission he led near Raffelsbrand crossing in Hurtgen.

where the dog tag had been found. When we arrived at the GPS coordinates we were greeted by a makeshift monument which was built by a local German man who had found Pvt. Reuters dog tags in 04, she wrote on a website tribute to Sgt. Blanton. Hed built this monument from rocks, metal shards and pieces of cement from an exploded pillbox. There arent words to describe this event. It still seems surreal. Ms. Fraker said she began to wonder what had happened to Pvt. Reuter. So she wrote his son telling him about the dog tag. My only motivation was to share whatever stories he might know about his fathers demise, Ms. Fraker said. Ms. Fraker said learning more about his fathers death had a huge impact on Mr. Reuter. He laughed and he cried at the same time, she said.

She contacted the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, or JPAC, hoping to find more information. The organization informed her that during a mission to Hurtgen Forest to research the area, members had met with two German World War II enthusiasts familiar with the former battleground. One of them, Hans-Peter Kotzan, had found Pvt. Reuters dog tag in 2004, JPAC officials wrote. But Mr. Kotzan refused to give JPAC the dog tag when he met with them in 2007. Mr. Kotzan said he was part of a small group that searches the forest almost every weekend with metal detectors in search of historical objects. While on her own trip to Berlin, Ms. Fraker visited Hurtgen Forest and went to the spot
36 Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

In its letter, JPAC suggested Mr. Reuter write to Mr. Kotzan himself. Mr. Reuter wrote to him in May, and he included a picture of his father. He received the dog tag May 18 with a note that read, in German, I will return the identification tag of your dad in hope that it will bring you joy, adding that he had researched Pvt. Reuter. I wrote the letter and I was afraid he was seeing dollar signs, Mr. Reuter said. But that wasnt the case. He just sent [it]. Mr. Reuter hopes he can visit Hurtgen Forest some day and see the memorial for his father. Ms. Fraker still hopes she can find her uncles remains.

North Georgia Relic Hunters Association

Marietta Parks and Recreation Department
Invites you to Attend

and the

THE 32 ANNUAL SOUTHEASTERN

At The Cobb County Civic Center

548 South Marietta Parkway, Marietta, GA

August 14th and 15th, 2010 Saturday: 9-5, Sunday: 9-3

Over 220 8 Foot Tables of: Dug Relics Guns & Swords Books Frameable Prints Paper Items Artillery Items Currency Inquires: NGRHA Attention: Show Chairman P.O. Box 503 Marietta, Georgia 30061
Relic Hunter July - August, 2010 37

www.NGRHA.com

The Lord o
Meet Dale Rohlf, the true Lord of the Rings. Imagine finding a $30,000 diamond ring buried in the sand on an Oahu beach. Now imagine finding two of them. Finders keepers, right? Not for Dale Rohlf, a retired U.S. Navy commander who spends his free time combing the beaches as a treasurehunting hobbyist. Last year he found more than 90 gold and platinum rings and then spent days, weeks sometimes monthslocating their owners. Two years ago, says Rohlf, I returned over $100,000 worth of jewelry to their owners. But sometimes, like one recent morning, Rohlf finds a plain platinum wedding band, corroded from years of sitting beneath salt water, and he knows that finding the owner would be nearly impossible. When there are no initials, no inscription, nothing to give me any kind of map toward finding the owner, I know Im probably going to scrap the metal. In this case, Rohlfs eight-gram platinum ring is worth $250. Not too bad for a couple hours of combing. Still, Rohlf says he gets the most joy out of finding treasures he can return. Someone once told me about a girl from Japan whod lost her diamond ring on Waikiki and continued to call her hotel asking about it, he says. Shed given her address to the lifeguard, and when I showed up with my metal detector, it only took me 10 minutes to find it. It was an 18-carat ring, with a narrow slot holding the diamond, almost like it was floating. I went to the lifeguard and asked for the address but no one could find it. So I gave them my number and told them to call me if they found it. A month went by, and they finally called me with her information. I knew that at two in the morning here it would be eight in the evening in Japan, so I waited until then to call her. A woman answered, in Japanese, and I could hear all these people in the background laughing and talking. I said I was calling from Hawaii and told her what I had found. She put her hand over the phone and started repeating what I was saying. It turns out it was the ring-owners birthday. She thought it was a practical joke. Finally they convinced her to come to the phone and I said, You left your contact info with the lifeguard, remember? Everyone started screaming and laughing. Needless to say it was a great birthday present.
38 Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

by Shantel Grace, Honolulu Week

of the Rings
I came from a very poor family, he says. We lived on a river in North Idaho and I had to put dinner on the table at least twice a week. I spent most of my childhood hunting and fishing, and it wasnt until I was already in the Navy that I got into metal detecting. Rohlf says a friend first introduced him to metal detecting, and as soon as he uncovered his first handful of coins, he was hooked. When I was stationed in Connecticut, I went to this neighborhood, knocking on doors, asking if anyone had lost anything in their yards, he says. I met a woman in her 70s or 80s who had lost her husband 20 years before. Shed been wearing his ring on her finger and was out cutting roses. When she came inside, it was gone. She said the rose bush was still there, so I went to the bush and had a good signal instantly. Six to eight inches deep, I pulled up this gold ring and she fainted. The neighbors saw it and called the police. She was lying on the grass like Id whacked her. After it was all over, the neighbors adopted me. This wasnt the first time someone had fainted on Rohlf. His incredible stories include a preacher who had been threatened by an angry groom after the ring had fallen out of his Bible; the sentimental return of a ring to a son whose father had been dying of cancer and asked him to wear it on his wedding day; a set of three rings lost on Magic Island worth $40,000 collectively and after the limousine left the newlyweds searching for them, Rohlf even offered the couple a ride back to town. Sometimes, though, Rohlfs efforts go unappreciated. Id found this ring with a German inscription in it, and after asking around, I finally left my number with the hotel in case anyone had heard of a German man whod lost his ring, he says. I got the call after just having surgery and wasnt in any shape to drive clear to Waikiki to return it. He insisted he couldnt go another day without it and said hed pay me $100 if I made the trip. When I showed up, there were cops all around me questioning how I got the ring. I gave them my business card and they left me alone. In the end, the guy didnt even have the $100. I think he gave me $60. The sight of a person wearing headphones, walking Waikiki and sweeping a metal detector over the sand is familiar. Less familiar is the fact that Rohlf returns thousands of dollars worth of jewelry to their sentimental owners. Thats really the best part, he says. Im retired, comfortable and Im not out combing the beaches for a quick buck.
Relic Hunter July - August, 2010 39

kly

In The News: Beware of counterfeit Minelab products being sold on the internet and from unauthorized black market manufacturers and dealers!
Only purchase from Minelab authorised dealers as listed on Minelab.com.
The high demand for quality Minelab gold detectors has seen an increasing number of poor performing counterfeit products being sold via websites and black market dealers around the world. For a purchaser familiar with Minelab products, some counterfeit products have been quite obviously not Minelab products, as seen by one example in Photos A - C. Unfortunately a lot of people unfamiliar with Minelab products are still being ripped off by these criminals, paying full price for a GPX-4500 only to get a counterfeit detector. In some cases the criminal counterfeiters have even taken a cheap detector and put its very basic electronics into a counterfeit GPX-4500 housing so that it appears to work to an unfamiliar purchaser. In all cases the performance of the Counterfeit products has ranged from very poor to not working at all. Counterfeit products now cosmetically difficult to tell from the real thing! In recent days Minelab has become aware of more counterfeit GPX-4500 detectors and Commander coils, that are cosmetically difficult to distinguish from the real thing, see Photo D - H. These products may cosmetically look like the real thing but definitely do not work like the real thing! Most counterfeit products are being sold over the internet on web sites like Alibaba. com and other similar selling and auction web sites. Minelab strongly recommends extreme caution when buying from a website of this kind and from unauthorized dealers. These products are often then on sold by unauthorized dealers, including black market and street dealers.
40 Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

A few examples of current listings for counterfeit Minelab products are listed below: 1. Top Detectors, Nakiye Argon Sok No:23 Daire 3 Osmanbey Sisli, Istanbul, Turkey. Website: http://www.topdetectors.net 2. JUNHONG ELECTRONIC&TECHNOLOGY(DONGGUAN)CO., LTD., No.18, Xinjiuwei, Liaobu, DongGuan, Guangdong, China. Tel:+86-769-89161705, 89161706, 89161707, 89161708 Fax:+86-769-88903075 Chinese website: http://www.jhking.net English website: http://www.chinametaldetector.com Arabic website: http://www.metaldetectors.ae 3. Hunter Group Dedektor Sistemleri Sanayi ve Dis Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Darulaceze Cad. Demirkaya Apt. No. 17 Kat.1 D.3 Sisli, Istanbul, Turkey. Phone: 00902122207034 Fax: 00902122207035 Website: http://www.hunter-group.us/ar/index.php http://mobbawaba.com/adprint.aspx?adnum=12472 4. Alibaba699 Wang Shang Road, Binjiang District, Hangzhou 310052, China Phone: +86 571-8502-2088 Fax: +86 571-8981-5505 Website: http://www.alibaba.com

Advertising from any company claiming to be a manufacturer of Minelab products is definitely counterfeit! Minelab Products are only Made by Minelab in Australia or by Plexus Corp, USA in their facility in Malaysia. BUYER BEWARE!! Minelab will not be held responsible for counterfeit Minelab products! The only way to guarantee you are purchasing a true high quality Minelab product is to make that purchase through an officially authorised Minelab dealer as listed on Minelab.com Finding an authorised Minelab dealer in your part of the world is very easy. Just go to Minelab.com, click on the WHERE TO BUY tab near the top of the CONSUMER page and select your country, state and Zip/Post code. The details of your nearest authorised Minelab dealers will appear. If you have any doubts if a dealer is an officially authorised Minelab dealer you can also ask Minelab using the CONTACT US section of Minelab.com to contact the regional office closest to you.
Relic Hunter July - August, 2010 41

(Reliable internet connection required.)

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You will never have to wait and watch a buffering message again.
Courses update themselves. How often have the words in a book, or movies on a DVD that you own, changed to reflect updated information? Of course, never. Courses in The Metal Detectives University can be updated any time the instructor feels like it. The next time you watch the course, youll be seeing the updated course.

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Unlike a classroom, where you share a teacher with other students, in The Metal Detectives University, you have your instructor all to yourself! You have total control over the learning experience. Quickly move through sections you understand, have your virtual instructor repeat steps or sections, take lab time and experiment whenever you wish- because you are the only student in this class.

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The Metal Detectives University is pretty self-explanatory, but here you can find brief step-by-step instructions If you have any questions, post them in this forum or call us at 1-800-965-3976 quoting mduni.com

42

Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

( Sample Computer Screen )

Relic Hunter July - August, 2010

43

Georgia Research and Recovery

Georgia Research and Recovery is raffling off this side by side, pin fired pistol. Raffle tickets are $1.00 each and the winning ticket will be chosen at the Civil War Show, the weekend of August 14, at the Cobb County Civic Center. You dont have to be present to win!

Great RAFFLES going on in Georgia!

North Georgia Relic Hunters Association
North Georgia Relic Hunters Association is raffling off this Civil War saber. Raffle tickets are $1.00 each and the winning ticket will be chosen at the Civil War Show, the weekend of August 14, at the Cobb County Civic Center. You dont have to be present to win!