What are YOU doing here?

TK-421 · Apr 10, 2017

I detect on Oki tourist beaches, most of which were created in the past few decades. I marvel at y'all finding old and rare coins 'cause that's just not a likelihood for me at all. Foreign coins? Yep! Gambling tokens? Definitely! Old/collectible coins? No way!

Imagine my surprise when I'm on one of my home beaches and I dig up what sounds like a 500 yen coin (that's $5 clad-- always a happy find!) and looks like 500 yen-- same size, same metal, even same ridges on the edges-- only to take a closer look at the front and see a face and some English lettering.

What are YOU doing here Mr... Kit Carson?

So of course I take it home, clean it up, and do a little googling and learn...

This was a collectible medal given out by gas stations somewhere in the Americas during 1970 and 1971. The company sponsoring the "Rugged American" series was the "Husky Oil Company" and the coins were produced by the Franklin Mint. If it were it in mint condition (it's not!) it would barely be worth the $5 I mistook it for.

Still, it boggles the mind-- how did a 47 year old gas station medal from America end up buried under a few inches of wet sand on a 25 year old Okinawan beach?

This hobby really throws ya for a loop sometimes! :lol:

Tlane38003 · Apr 10, 2017

Cool find

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ScubaDetective · Apr 10, 2017

Probably some service member. I was stationed there from 1978 - 1980. LOVED it. Learned to dive there but never detected it. Lucky YOU!!

Crackerjack · Apr 10, 2017

Never heard of Husky Oil.

Keep in mind that boats and ships from all over the world can sink off your coast, and the ocean/sea can wash anything up on your beach. In addition to the vessels, there are aircraft that crash. Together, that's tons and tons of "stuff" washing around out there.

N2990 · Apr 10, 2017

Maybe it was mistaken for a quarter or dollar coin and ended up in someone's pocket change?! Cool find!

zeemang · Apr 10, 2017

Cool unusual find!

FelixtheCat · Apr 10, 2017

You just never know when or where things show up! Here are 2 for me that I'd like to share.

First one was a GOLD coin I found in a sanded exercise pit of a vita course at a local park 9 years ago. An 1876 Ottoman-Turkiish Empire 100 Kurus Gold Coin.

Second one was a hammered Roman bronze coin at Boy Scout camp in Central Florida over 6 years ago.

These are among my most unusual and treasured finds. :yes:

TK-421 · Apr 10, 2017

ScubaDetector said:
Probably some service member. I was stationed there from 1978 - 1980. LOVED it. Learned to dive there but never detected it. Lucky YOU!!

Yeah, that seems likely. There have been Americans here for a long time now and some of us just never left!

Crackerjack said:
Never heard of Husky Oil.

Keep in mind that boats and ships from all over the world can sink off your coast, and the ocean/sea can wash anything up on your beach. In addition to the vessels, there are aircraft that crash. Together, that's tons and tons of "stuff" washing around out there.

Heh, me either!

Good point-- I hadn't thought of the shipwreck angle. As it happens, the beach directly downhill from my apartment is where the bodies wash up (not so much their vessels, though). For some reason if there's a death at sea along a pretty wide stretch of coast along here, the body has a weirdly high chance of winding up on our little beach. Makes you think twice about taking a night-walk on the beach. I haven't personally encountered one (they're in the newspaper, of course) but I've got friends who have...

N2990 said:
Maybe it was mistaken for a quarter or dollar coin and ended up in someone's pocket change?! Cool find!

Definitely possible. It's pretty unlike any American clad, but I wouldn't be surprised if the owner confused it for a 500yen, like I did. It's almost exactly the same size, weight, and color. Though Japanese coins don't have faces, so that's a bit of a giveaway.

It's pretty fun imagining stories for coins found in weird places, that must be part of the draw for coin-shooters and relic hunters.

FelixtheCat said:
You just never know when or where things show up! Here are 2 for me that I'd like to share.

First one was a GOLD coin I found in a sanded exercise pit of a vita course at a local park 9 years ago. An 1876 Ottoman-Turkiish Empire 100 Kurus Gold Coin.

Second one was a hammered Roman bronze coin at Boy Scout camp in Central Florida over 6 years ago.

These are among my most unusual and treasured finds.

Duuuuuuuude! Those are both epic in completely different ways! Treasured finds indeed! Wow! You must have been over the moon! Thanks for sharing!

dirtykneese · Apr 11, 2017

It is crazy what you find. I have found Chinese coins in tot lots before too.
Are you finding any jewelery yet ?
Good luck out their and hope you don't find a gold ring with a finger in it.
KEN

Crackerjack · Apr 11, 2017

TK-421 said:
Good point-- I hadn't thought of the shipwreck angle. As it happens, the beach directly downhill from my apartment is where the bodies wash up (not so much their vessels, though). For some reason if there's a death at sea along a pretty wide stretch of coast along here, the body has a weirdly high chance of winding up on our little beach. Makes you think twice about taking a night-walk on the beach. I haven't personally encountered one (they're in the newspaper, of course) but I've got friends who have...

I don't think you have much to fear from the dead...now the living, YES! BE AFRAID, BE VERY AFRAID! :hide:

What are YOU doing here?

TK-421

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