We haven`t had more frosty nights since last week, but when I drove to the dig site yesterday I noticed that the fresh snow on the tops had crept a lot closer to the tree line. The forest covered hillsides, and most of the ground everywhere else are now a mix of green, yellow and red. It is really beautiful, so that the days are a bit wet is a low price to pay for such spectacular views.
In the morning sun I did some walking around with the metal detector while enjoying all these colors going on around me. A few signals in I scored a mess kit, and a small box for ignitors. Near a little curve in the river going alongside the camp was a nice view point and there were a lot of food tins and bottles laying around under the moss and berrybushes. Clearly a place the soldiers had enjoyed hanging around after duty. Nearby I dug up a very nice Finnish coin, a broken wall clock, an orange smoke candle and some cable reels.
Near the ruins of a small building I began digging a rather weak signal. It was half of a door hinge some five centimeter under the ground. I took it away and swept the detector over again. Now I got a weak but clear signal so I continued to dig. Soon I met large rocks and began suspecting it was a trash pit under them. The layer of rocks were ca 30-40 cm, but then metal, glass and bits of planks began showing up. Some of the bottles I pulled up had labels, or parts of labels intact, and it is always interesting to be able to see some of them since most bottles don`t have them any longer. Deeper in the pit was a Juwel primus, and then another one next to it. When I removed them I saw a leather pouch. I thought it could be for glasses or sunglasses, but inside there were some dentist tools, a big tweezer, scissors and a thermometer. What an odd and cool find! The next item also gave me great joy. A trench art cigarett case! Quite large and it looked to be nicely made. The motive on the lid was a man drinking champagne, and on the backside prehaps the name of the one portraited; "Hans Düppelhofer. Liinahamari (which is a small village in Petchenga, Russia) 1944". A super find! Something as unique and personal as a good trench art item is hard to find. The next item to be carefully tucked onto the pile of relics was a full ampoule. And then a intact lightbulb.
Some time later the bottom of the pit was found on ca one meter but how much was left to any of the sides I didn`t know yet. After widening it a little I knew what direction it went and I continued that way. Now I found the side of a possible box, and a little scraping and digging later I could take out a MG ammo box from the earthen wall. The handle was missing and the lid had a hole but other than that it was complete, and best of it all was the tri-tonal camo it was painted in! I`ll definitely find a good way to display that one.
The well started to dry out but I was still fighting one of the last relics loose from a rock holding it tight. A gasmask canister, and inside it someone had stuck a Heer axe head, and a wooden pestle for a mortar grinder. The canister looked like it has lots of color left so I will give it a go in oxalic acid to see how much of the rust I can get off it.
It ll be a rainy few next days but I think we ll be able to squeeze in one more trip to the fields of rust before weekend comes with all its relaxiness ;)
In the morning sun I did some walking around with the metal detector while enjoying all these colors going on around me. A few signals in I scored a mess kit, and a small box for ignitors. Near a little curve in the river going alongside the camp was a nice view point and there were a lot of food tins and bottles laying around under the moss and berrybushes. Clearly a place the soldiers had enjoyed hanging around after duty. Nearby I dug up a very nice Finnish coin, a broken wall clock, an orange smoke candle and some cable reels.
Near the ruins of a small building I began digging a rather weak signal. It was half of a door hinge some five centimeter under the ground. I took it away and swept the detector over again. Now I got a weak but clear signal so I continued to dig. Soon I met large rocks and began suspecting it was a trash pit under them. The layer of rocks were ca 30-40 cm, but then metal, glass and bits of planks began showing up. Some of the bottles I pulled up had labels, or parts of labels intact, and it is always interesting to be able to see some of them since most bottles don`t have them any longer. Deeper in the pit was a Juwel primus, and then another one next to it. When I removed them I saw a leather pouch. I thought it could be for glasses or sunglasses, but inside there were some dentist tools, a big tweezer, scissors and a thermometer. What an odd and cool find! The next item also gave me great joy. A trench art cigarett case! Quite large and it looked to be nicely made. The motive on the lid was a man drinking champagne, and on the backside prehaps the name of the one portraited; "Hans Düppelhofer. Liinahamari (which is a small village in Petchenga, Russia) 1944". A super find! Something as unique and personal as a good trench art item is hard to find. The next item to be carefully tucked onto the pile of relics was a full ampoule. And then a intact lightbulb.
Some time later the bottom of the pit was found on ca one meter but how much was left to any of the sides I didn`t know yet. After widening it a little I knew what direction it went and I continued that way. Now I found the side of a possible box, and a little scraping and digging later I could take out a MG ammo box from the earthen wall. The handle was missing and the lid had a hole but other than that it was complete, and best of it all was the tri-tonal camo it was painted in! I`ll definitely find a good way to display that one.
The well started to dry out but I was still fighting one of the last relics loose from a rock holding it tight. A gasmask canister, and inside it someone had stuck a Heer axe head, and a wooden pestle for a mortar grinder. The canister looked like it has lots of color left so I will give it a go in oxalic acid to see how much of the rust I can get off it.
It ll be a rainy few next days but I think we ll be able to squeeze in one more trip to the fields of rust before weekend comes with all its relaxiness ;)
A mystery "box".
Finnish 5 Markkaa.
Medical bottle.
Skin oil.
Branca.
Juwel burners.
Small medical/dentist kit.
Cigarett box.
Full ampoule.
Intact lightbulb.
Melted gaming pieces.
Keys and candle.
Shaving mirror.
Ammo box.
A small leather pouch.
Gas mask canister.
Wooden pestle, axe head in background.
The dentist kit.
Trench art box.
"Hans Düppelhofer Liinahamari 1944"
I have found many shaving mirrors since I began this hobby, but the one I found in this dumping pit had a very interesting motive on the back. A soldier on guard by what looks like a 8.8 cm Flak gun, with norwegian mountains in the background.
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