Our turn

[Oberon]

Hamburg had a Block-Buster, now Harwich is bringing up parts of a V2

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-17572030

[Torplexed]

Apparently, Hitler harbored a hatred for Harwich. :D

[August]

One thing that has always fascinated me about the old world is the sheer amount of human history packed into such a small area. I seems like there is something to be found in nearly any given square foot.

Over here most of us can walk a mile into the woods and be pretty assured that there is nothing but dirt and rock below our feet. No V-2, no pots of Roman gold, medieval swords or fallen crowns, you folks are just awash in human history.

Of course the flip side of that coin is that there's no chance my garden spade is going to hit long lost a block buster bomb either but it's still pretty cool for what else you may turn up.

[krashkart]

And over here we have a tendency to tear down the old stuff and replace it with cheap strip malls. :damn:

[Oberon]

London, Kent and Eastern England (particularly Suffolk) seem to be the most prone to this, primarily because of what was dropped on it by the Germans, Americans and British. In our area in particularly you're more likely to find British munitions than German since the whole area south of the river here was used as a live fire area, they even moored a warship off the coast so it could shell the area to act as enemy artillery...only one day it aimed in the wrong direction and shelled the town... :doh:
They built a mock-up of the Atlantic wall to figure out ways to breach it and test Hobarts funnies.

[Betonov]

Of course the flip side of that coin is that there's no chance my garden spade is going to hit long lost a block buster bomb either but it's still pretty cool for what else you may turn up.

The valley of river Soca, the area of the front between Austria-Hungary and Italy during the great war is full of these artifacts. Almost nothing but mountains so no plow or construction ever un-earthed them. Anyone that ever went up there with a metal detector found something. And some were killed, some of the amunition is still live.

[Herr-Berbunch]

Apparently, Hitler harbored a hatred for Harwich. :D

He'd obviously been there. I've been five times - once with two four-tonners just to see if there was a Shell garage, twice to get the love boat across to NL - weather was crap and had to go to Felixstowe instead. And the return journeys. Grey dump from what I can remember. :D

[August]

The valley of river Soca, the area of the front between Austria-Hungary and Italy during the great war is full of these artifacts. Almost nothing but mountains so no plow or construction ever un-earthed them. Anyone that ever went up there with a metal detector found something. And some were killed, some of the amunition is still live.

It's striking how long munitions will still remain dangerous. A couple years ago we had a guy get blown up and killed messing around with a civil war cannonball.

[Jimbuna]

Hamburg had a Block-Buster, now Harwich is bringing up parts of a V2

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-17572030

It sounds like it was probably shot down by AA fire :hmmm:

[Gargamel]

Americans think 200 years is a long time, Europeans think 200 miles is a long drive.

[Schroeder]

It sounds like it was probably shot down by AA fire :hmmm:
As far as I know the V2 could not be engaged with the equipment of WWII. They were flying too high to be tracked by radar and therefore struck without warning. Maybe it's structure failed as it reached high speeds on it's descend towards the target....:hmmm:

[Jimbuna]

As far as I know the V2 could not be engaged with the equipment of WWII. They were flying too high to be tracked by radar and therefore struck without warning. Maybe it's structure failed as it reached high speeds on it's descend towards the target....:hmmm:

Aye that.....my mistook....presumed it was a V1 :oops:

http://img94.imageshack.us/img94/1707/p1000418q.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/94/p1000418q.jpg/)

[Torplexed]

One thing that has always fascinated me about the old world is the sheer amount of human history packed into such a small area. I seems like there is something to be found in nearly any given square foot.


I've heard it said in America, what is now a town or farm was once probably a forest.

In Britain what is now a forest was likely once a town or farm....multiple times. :cool:

[Oberon]

As far as I know the V2 could not be engaged with the equipment of WWII. They were flying too high to be tracked by radar and therefore struck without warning. Maybe it's structure failed as it reached high speeds on it's descend towards the target....:hmmm:

That's what I was thinking, or the warhead detonated prematurely which is odd because I thought they were contact based.

[krashkart]

I've heard it said in America, what is now a town or farm was once probably a forest.

In Britain what is now a forest was likely once a town or farm....multiple times. :cool:

And what is now a shiny new shopping mall and parking lot used to be a farm. :yep:

[Torplexed]

And what is now a shiny new shopping mall and parking lot used to be a farm. :yep:

Yeah...I know. In 1988, part of the battlefield at Bull Run barely avoided becoming a mall.

"Mommy, did the Union lose the battle becuz the soldiers got delayed at the Starbucks?" :nope:

[August]

I've heard it said in America, what is now a town or farm was once probably a forest.

In Britain what is now a forest was likely once a town or farm....multiple times. :cool:

Could you imagine rooting around in your back yard and digging up a Viking helmet? Feeling 1500 years of intervening time and history suddenly peel away as you imagine how it might have come to be there. Man that would be neat!

[Torplexed]

Could you imagine rooting around in your back yard and digging up a Viking helmet? Feeling 1500 years of intervening time and history suddenly peel away as you imagine how it might have come to be there. Man that would be neat!

Yeah, that would be cool. All I've ever found buried in my backyard are broken beer bottles and somebody's old engine block. :O: You don't exactly feel the history.

[Betonov]

Could you imagine rooting around in your back yard and digging up a Viking helmet? Feeling 1500 years of intervening time and history suddenly peel away as you imagine how it might have come to be there. Man that would be neat!

Vikings were supposed to reach N. America, so it's possible. Unlikely but possible.

Attics in old buildings are a treasure chest. I found a book from 1890, two silver corones minted in 1909 and a gramophone player so old my grandmother hardly remembers it just from my own house.
I really got to raid some abandoned farms that are quite a few in my parts :arrgh!:

[kranz]

Could you imagine rooting around in your back yard and digging up a Viking helmet? Man that would be neat!
helmet would be neat, but how about a land mine, a mortar or heavy artillery shell? :D
In Poland, the most frequent reason for temporary closures of building sites in the cities situated near the border with Germany is finding the aforementioned "objects" (mostly artillery and mortar shells). It happens especially in the cities which were turned into so-called "Festung". What is more, people still find weapons and light/medium artillery ammo in their basements.
There is also a place, sth like 60 kms away from the place I live, which used to be Africa Korps' training ground and after the war it served the same purpose to the Soviet troops. People go there to "officially" pick a few mushrooms while their intention is to scavenge anything which has a historic value.

[Egan]

A school friend of mine found a sword that had most likely been discarded by a Highlander on the run from the government forces following the failure of the '45 uprising. Of course stuff like that always comes under the treasure trove laws so the Museum of Scotland got it in the end but IIRC he recieved a few quid for his find. I've found a couple of neart things over the years but nothing like that. (Slightly different thing, but the guys in the second hand bookshop across the road from me were sold a folio a few years ago that turned out to include half a dozen unknown loose-sheet sketches by the poet John Blake. They sold them at auction and made about a million....)

Where I grew up there are still barrows that haven't been excavated, lost Roman forts and I believe i've already told the story of the 1000 year old grave stones belonging to Christianized Viking incommers in a very old church yard along the road from my parents house. Lots of other things too.

History is cool. As for America - North America has been inhabited for the best part of, what, 20,000 years? There must be some very interesting stuff there.

[August]

History is cool. As for America - North America has been inhabited for the best part of, what, 20,000 years? There must be some very interesting stuff there.

Unfortunately given the size of the area, the rather low population density and the fact that the Indians did not do metal work or build much in the way of stone structures means that there is very little left to find. Flint arrowheads mostly and even those pickings are pretty slim.

[krashkart]

History is cool. As for America - North America has been inhabited for the best part of, what, 20,000 years? There must be some very interesting stuff there.

Very true, and I was wanting to point it out but pot hunters tend to be a problem over here, so I don't share much of my experience with that. I took the opportunity to join several anthro digs when I was in junior high and got to see some pretty interesting stuff while I was out there. :up:

[Bilge_Rat]

Vikings were supposed to reach N. America, so it's possible. Unlikely but possible.



Vikings did reach NA, Newfoundland to be exact:

http://archaeology.about.com/cs/explorers/a/anseauxmeadows.htm