Detecting in South Africa

Hi Viking....
Let me introduce myself: Jim Cianelli from Brooklyn NY
In 2006 I had the pleasure of detecting a Boer war site with Pierre, Lukas, Wolf, John and Tony from somewhere near J'burg. It was a trip of all trips. Really enjoyed myself as did most everyone else.
We even climbed up Spienkop (?). That was a trip indeed...I just about made it to the top...
I'm trying to swing a trip back there next September...I'll have to see how 2011 goes before I make any real plans but don't get me wrong, I'd give my right testicle to go there again.I truly enjoyed that week I spent there.
Pierre told me he met Peter and his wife before. I'm not sure Peter remembers him.
Lukas has sold his home outside J'burg and moved to a ranch near Pt Elizabeth. Again, he offered for me to come and spend some time with him there. I was in Hunstanton England with him and Pierre, detecting for a week this past October.
The boys of SA are truly fine people.
Take care and good hearing from you, Jim


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Hi Viking...that sounds inviting to say the least. I'm not sure of the exact dates but it's usually the first or second week in Sept. that they put on these hunts. About these hunts, all I know is they invited two of us from the states and one from England. I'm not sure of the politics that goes into it but they treated us royally and we surely appreciated it. I've made some great friends there. The two things that I appreciated most: the internet and the jet plane. They both have made this world a much smaller place indeed.
Regards, Jim

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http://www.thunting.com/smf/index.php/topic,19144.msg126513.html#msg126513

Well Viking, from this side of the pond, I wish you all the luck in the world. There has to be a lot of goodies buried as with all wars, people stash their wealth somewhere in the ground but sometimes they never live to dig it up.
Jim
 

Posted on: November 17, 2010, 06:06:22 PM

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Viking. you might want to visit this site:

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Just copy and past it in  your browser...This was started out as an international forum but as of late, there's just a handful of us that post there. But it is a way to keep up with what's happening in other parts of the world.
Possibly introducing yourself might bring a few of those SA guys out of hibernation....Worth a try....
Jim


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http://www.thunting.com/smf/index.php/topic,19144.msg126522.html#msg126522

Hey PGill
Well my alerts are coming through again , I really think that it is a matter of research, finding good spots. Next I think maybe some kind of club guidelines. Maybe Xavier could start a new thread where ideas for guidelines or actually rules are posted and the people interested can hash them out. Kind of vote them in or out. Keep them simple and strong like "20 rules of the club" for example.
Next would be a data sheet with all members listed and a Club description of what we do, when we do it, with what, and why....I know it's a mouth full but we need to be taken seriously if we want access to any good sites.
A website is always a good idea and it could link back here to lend support and spread interest as well.
I will see if I can organize a radio interview once we have our ducks in a row.
I think we should welcome all people interested in history, not just metal detectorists. Some people enjoy the research and don't necessarily want to go and hunt in the hot sun....and think about the reward they get when their research leads us to some awesome finds.
You know without sounding like a dreamer we could start our own museum somewhere with members being shareholders or whatever.
Here is a start. Name:          SAAAS_ South African Amateur Archeology Society....see it's easy
                      First 2 rules: # 1 Always obtain permission before the hunt....from the land owner!
                                         # 2 Always fill in your holes.And leave the place as you found it.
Ok guys let's go...... I could put 20 rules down in a heartbeat, but this is a club right.....not a one man show!
Viking




Posted on: November 18, 2010, 02:16:41 AM

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*Club id cards.
*Tutorial on the proper methods of cutting and replacing grass sods.
*Recovery techniques
*Problem signals and how to overcome them/ what action to take.
*The reporting of important artifacts.What constitutes an important find.
*Machine reviews
*Diy accessories and equipment.
*All the above relating to the South African conditions not Europe or the States. This will also help prepare visitors.
*" A word from the Prof." type column where we invite the Professorial to give us feedback and ideas etc.
*Our own archives with relevant info posted as research comes in.
Okay now I'm gonna go do some real work.
Just a few more ideas....I get quite excited hehehe!
Viking



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http://www.thunting.com/smf/index.php/topic,19144.msg126567.html#msg126567

Guys,
This is great... lots of excitement going on 

I believe that the first thing we should do is to list SA personnel with full details so that we know where we are all from and how we can tie ourselves together. In a sense, that is what I have been trying to do on this topic... We need to know who's who here.

As for the rules of the club.... at this time, the club still does not exist until we have the people to make a club from. But this will happen very soon if we carry on the way we are 

The antiquities Dept of South Africa, at this time is quite a joke, in fact the last I heard it was falling apart due to no money......

To give you a couple of examples as to what is going on around us:

The Klipriversburg Fort in the south of Johannesburg was pretty much complete with the big wooden doors and the date over the door..... Now if you go there, the doors are gone, the bricks are being removed and piled up ready for collection, the back wall has a section that was knocked down and soil from a new project (storm water channel) near the road, has now been pushed into the fort by front end loaders to get rid of the soil. The locals are growing mealies inside th fort, and also there are trees growing inside the fort that are now about 6 metres high.

Also in the South of Johannesburg is a small catholic church which had a corrugated roof on it and stained glass windows. I visited this empty church about 5 years ago, and it was spotless.... Now the buildings roof is in the squatter camp which has been allowed to grow around the church. All the stained glass windows were removed, no doubt the lead being stolen for scrap metal, walls have been damaged, trees growing in the building, graves being damaged and tombs opened....

I recently wrote a letter to a place where there is an old ruined hotel from the 1800's, and was politely told that I cannot detect there as it is protected by the Heritage Society..... Well the building is being turned into a bigger ruin, the whole area is overgrown with weeds and trees, a graveyard in the area has broken gravestones, and is not being looked after.... Instead of letting people like us in to detect and try and save our heritage, they would sooner see our history become unknown history......

There are many more of these historical sites that are being totally destroyed....

I am going to be writing to the Heritage Society about all this, to try and let them use us to make a difference in preserving our history before it is too late. That is big on my agenda 

In the mean time though, what I am suggesting is that we gather all our names (South African people) to make a list up that we can keep in contact with each other..... Make up a mail list so we can share news etc.... Obviously we do not want to give all our details to the world, so if you like you can send all your details to me and I will compile the list which we can pass out to the email group. What we would need is Full name, address, tel Numbers, email address, what type of hunting you like to do, what you job position is and what you do.... If you would like me to be the point of contact, then send me your details to pgvhome@yahoo.com in the Subject line put "Treasure Club" so that I can separate from my normal stuff. When we have quite a few people, then we can put together a website with it's own email address....

Let me know what you think, and we can get started.


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