We met up at the usual spot and headed directly to the forest where a dumping pit could be waiting. On the side of the dug out stood a large enamel lid from a field kitchen kettle, and the ground seemed to be full of metal. After removing a couple of buckets, porcelain insulators and a steel net for making concrete foundations we had to double check with both detectors. There were no more metal, no porcelain, nothing.
Luckily the ground in the birch forest was full of different signals so we would be able to make the day pass. A few steps away from the dug out I opened up two signals. An ashtray with a vikingship and "Norge", and a letter opener formed as a sword where the handle is a miniature of the Olav Tryggvasson statue standing on the main square in Trondheim.
Next to the barely visible old camp road the detector rang out again. This time a small spill of relics was the cause. I found handles and parts from a crate, different cream tubes and perfume bottles, a bakelite drinking cup, metal dishes, a couple of coins and a luggage tag made from steel, but the name and feldpostnummer still readable.
Across the road I had to open up the ground again because of a good signal. A food tin and a toothpaste tube surrounded by gaming pieces. I sat on my knees there for a long time scraping through the soil trying to catch all the small chess bits made of glass. The pile grew and in the end I must have found more than two hundred of them.
After putting the moss back in place I didn`t get many meters. The detector stopped me again and now it showed me a small ditch full of metal, and some glass. The ditch had been set fire to and it had burnt out destroying almost everything that had been thrown in it. Only a few bottles and food tins had survived in the middle of the ditch,plus a trench art candle holder which was pretty cool. In one of the ends of it two more items had just gotten a licking from the flames, a belt buckle and a bracelet.
The day had flown and we had to collect our belongings and head back to the car. Baard hadn`t had any luck with finds except a trench art ashtray, but he had climbed up the mountainside and found more of the tunnels the germans had carved. Naturally his camera was in his backpack down in the forest where I was digging so there is no pics of the complex there :D He had also met the landowner and was armed with some more hints and info for future expeditions.
Lots of the usual rubbish and relics came out of the ditch, rusted and some partly burnt. A couple of alco bottles in different shades of green landed in the pile for relics to save, and so did some rusted field torches, colorful soap boxes, cream tubes, a bakelite drinking cup and several toothbrushes.
Together with the toothbrushes were a few bakelite powder charge tins. One of them had initials engraved and three of them had leftovers inside of what looked like toothpowder. So I wonder if the soldiers had taken these boxes and used for their hygienic products.
The dumping pit wasn`t very large but it held a lot of items, and for once almost no rocks, broken glass or heavy bits of metal. I found two mugs, one beer mug of glass, and a porcelain coffee mug decorated with football players. A pair of sunglasses was fairly intact, it only missed one of the lenses. An item made from some kind of clear plastic caused some wonder and mystery, but we have landed on that it is a stand for a mirror. Another clear piece of plastic had been made into a luggage tag and had a soldiers name carved into it.
A beautiful blue perfume bottle fell out from the side of the ditch. It had an interesting decor and on the bottom "czechoslovakia" with very small letters. Two shoulderboards, one with silver along the edge for an unteroffizier was in very good condition and will make a great addition to a display.
Under the shoulderboards was my new favorite relic. A single cigarett ashtray. Barely three centimeters across and cut from crystal. A beautiful little conversation starter.
On the bottom was a coal fed iron, the type to make nicely pressed uniforms. Also on the bottom was a canteen with its screwcork and drinking cup, the cloth cover on it was even partly intact. One of the last finds in the ditch was quite interesting. Also directly linked to the artillery unit. Several plastic sheets with info and grids regarding the F.H18 cannon and powder charges vs wind direction. If someone with more knowledge about them would like to share info I would appreciate it :)
I still don`t know how the coming week will be with work, but I hope I get some days off to roam in the woods. The berrypicking season is here as well so it ll be double busy with picking them and relics. Nothing is better than a freezer well stocked with good local berries to enjoy through the dark winter.
Thanks for reading and enjoy your week :)