What’s top of your ‘ordinary items’ wish list?

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Oxgirl
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I was thinking about the things I want to find this year but which aren’t blingy or valuable or made of precious metal. For me it’s a fancy ‘special’ crotal bell :D

I’m lucky to live in an area where crotal bells are fairly common and I was lucky enough to find a lovely intact one in the first few months of detecting; then 3 more in the same area over the next few days. Other ones have popped up every year and I’ve probably had 15-20 in the last 3 years, including a couple that are late medieval and lots of 17-18th century ones.

But I’ve never found a whole fish scale one, or one with an initial makers mark (only the hammer marked ones) or one with a face on. My permissions are teasing me right now though cause I found this fragment a few months ago...
3316A57C-6E5F-4862-9BA5-3F5F7DDBC9B3.jpeg
And this bit last week...
366C016A-17F7-4B47-A33C-613E0CE3A890.jpeg
So my number one find I am searching for this year is a medieval crotal bell with a face or fish scale design. What’s yours?
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I-Rutus
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Mine is a silver thimble, I like so many have had lots of thimbles, but never a silver one
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TerraBritannia
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A complete Crotal bell is on my wish list too. They're something that I rarely come across and I've only ever found one mangled piece.
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Pete E
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Oxgirl wrote: ↑Tue Jul 28, 2020 10:05 am I was thinking about the things I want to find this year but which aren’t blingy or valuable or made of precious metal. For me it’s a fancy ‘special’ crotal bell :D .........
What’s yours?
Don't get me started! lol :roll:

Really, anything older than 1700, and as a real bonus, it would be whole rather than just some obscure fragment...

Whole patterned crotal bells and silver beehive thimble are the stuff dreams are made of! :P
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Littleboot
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Good topic.
I'd quite like a jew's harp. Not found one....and I don't know if they are over here in France to actually be found. I am also after a small decorated bell.....I have had complete ones (crotal and open) here but the only one with any decoration was (naturally!) broken. It had alternate Fleur de Lys and roses.
The other thing I would like to find more of...is old French door furniture. Some lovely old catches and locks and hinges here and i love to re-use them in my renovation projects.
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Easylife
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I'm okay for crotal bells and have a silver thimble, but I've never found a Charles I or II coin, so that is the gap in my coin collection. :thumbsup:
Good things come to those who wait.
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Pete E
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Littleboot wrote: ↑Tue Jul 28, 2020 11:24 am The other thing I would like to find more of...is old French door furniture. Some lovely old catches and locks and hinges here and i love to re-use them in my renovation projects.
Other than weighing in lead, or making displays of their finds, that's the first time I have heard of anybody reusing finds ..I especially like the idea you are reusing them for what they were intended originally! :thumbsup:

If you have any before and after pics of any of these, I would love to see them? Maybe start a fresh thread for them?

Regards,

Peter
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Oxgirl
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Pete E wrote: ↑Tue Jul 28, 2020 11:53 am Other than weighing in lead, or making displays of their finds, that's the first time I have heard of anybody reusing finds ..I especially like the idea you are reusing them for what they were intended originally! :thumbsup:

If you have any before and after pics of any of these, I would love to see them? Maybe start a fresh thread for them?

Regards,

Peter
I like that! Good idea Jan. I’ve just got into leatherwork and the large pile of bronze plain rings I find are going to get reused. I might even repurpose some of the annular buckles too. I have a few pins from then that would make great toggles too. What’s the point of leaving stuff in drawers?
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Easylife
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Pete E wrote: ↑Tue Jul 28, 2020 11:53 am Other than weighing in lead, or making displays of their finds, that's the first time I have heard of anybody reusing finds ..I especially like the idea you are reusing them for what they were intended originally! :thumbsup:
I reused a couple of small harness buckles on my finds bag to attach the strap and another as a suspension point for my bungee. They are much better quality than the Chinese monkey metal or plastic ones. :thumbsup:
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Daz2110
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I'm not sure if you'd class this as an ordinary item, but it's certainly not clutching at straws. But I'd like to find a complete crotal bell that still rings
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Littleboot
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Pete E wrote: ↑Tue Jul 28, 2020 11:53 am Other than weighing in lead, or making displays of their finds, that's the first time I have heard of anybody reusing finds ..I especially like the idea you are reusing them for what they were intended originally! :thumbsup:

If you have any before and after pics of any of these, I would love to see them? Maybe start a fresh thread for them?

Regards,

Peter
I will take some pictures and post them tomorrow! I once found an early 19th century bronze key and then the entire lock some days later. It is the kind of lock which is made of pieces of metal fitted into a piece of oak. The wood was almost rotted away but it was all intact, I have a door handle from a now disappeared 17th century farmhouse on the door of my studio.
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shaggybfc
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I'm still waiting to find a complete crotal bell. I have found lots of fragments, and even one with only the loop missing, but alas not a camplete one.....yet.
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Easylife
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Daz2110 wrote: ↑Tue Jul 28, 2020 12:54 pm I'm not sure if you'd class this as an ordinary item, but it's certainly not clutching at straws. But I'd like to find a complete crotal bell that still rings
Crotal bells are like busses, you wait ages for one and then two come along at once! :thumbsup: :lol:
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Kenleyboy
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I have been lucky enough to find a few full crotal bells but never a large size version , the ones I have found are small but nicely decorated .
One of our club members managed to find one almost the size of a tennis ball , complete and beautifully decorated , so that would be one on the list for me .
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Oxgirl
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Daz2110 wrote: ↑Tue Jul 28, 2020 12:54 pm I'm not sure if you'd class this as an ordinary item, but it's certainly not clutching at straws. But I'd like to find a complete crotal bell that still rings
You see Daz for my neck of the woods they aren’t uncommon but in other areas they are. Look for old village pounds - that’s where I’ve found the majority of mine :D
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