Monday started at 7:00am. We first had to meet up with Hrvoje Vulic, the chief archaeologist at Vinkovci Museum to be briefed on the conditions of our permits and then on the methodology for the days work. We were to search the site with the CTX3030’s using the on board GPS and data logging to show the position of each signal. The signal would then be excavated by a technician who would bag and tag it with the find point number. Once the area had been searched the technicians would identify the area of highest concentration and excavate it by around 6” (150mm) while we searched the spoil for any coins that may have been missed. Then we were to search the area again and the process would be repeated. We were excited, although this wasn’t the site we had come to search we had found four coins on the surface and the site hadn’t been metal detected before. The indications were good.
When we got to the site we fitted one of the CTX3030’s with the CTX 06 smart coil which is ideal for what we would be doing, it wouldn’t give huge depth but it would give excellent target separation. The second machine was fitted with the standard CTX 11 smart coil and would be used to search from outside of the site inwards, this would allow us to use the data logging to show the extent of the scattered coins.
Within minutes of starting the coins started showing themselves, but they weren’t revealing themselves as thick and fast as we had hoped, it was slow going. I don’t think I have ever searched quite as slow and low as I did there. We were listening for the faintest murmour of a signal. The first search took about two hours, we recovered a further 23 coins which were all of Sigismund and Maria which placed them as part of the original hoard – just what we were looking for!
The technicians then set to with their digging. They excavated a trench roughly 12’ x 8’ (3.6m x 2.4m) and as the spoil was removed it was deposited and spread out for us to search. We found another 2 coins in the spoil which showed just how thorough the CTX 3030 had been. Once the technicians had removed the first layer of soil the trench was searched with the 6” coil, no signals were found. The CTX 06" was swapped out for the CTX 17" and the trench searched again but this time with a fully open screen and set to two-tone ferrous. Again, no signals were heard. As far as we were concerned there were no more metal objects to be found in the trench.
The Archaeologist in charge at the site told the technicians to remove another layer of soil which too the trench down to the subsoil. The spoil was removed and spread out again, no more coins were found, nor any other signals. Once cleaned, the trench showed no marks in the sub-soil suggesting a deeply buried deposition. The archaeologist was happy that all remaining coins had been recovered and the technicians were told to back fill the trench. Whilst they did that we decided to go for a little wander around the site with the standard CTX 11" coils fitted, just to see what else was there. No more mediaeval coins were found in the vicinity but amongst the bullets and other signals we were extremely pleased to find a nice fat Celtic bronze and a big bronze Roman coin. The Celtic coin fell to me and gave me a huge buzz ….. I didn’t know what was to come later in the week!
Comments
To make comments you must be logged in, please note comments will not display immediately due to moderation