Treasure, Treasure, Treasure Everywhere...

With so many treasures around, you'd think we'd all be getting rich.

However, it takes more than just knowing about leads to things; it means undertaking the work involved to go get treasures, to check out the leads, to follow up on hunches, etc.

And many of those leads, hunches, etc will be dead ends, for one reason or other. 

Disappointment has stymied more than one hopeful treasure hunter.

Cash backing is another aspect that tends to keep people from pursuing their leads, fleshing out the details, etc.   

They say "it takes money to make money," and, frankly, as a general stateme, it is correct.

Treasure hunting is not cheap.

Then comes the potential for others to claim "your" treasure once it has been found.   The folks working at Oak Island may find that items they discover may well be claimed by the Canadian government as archaeological relics.

Treasure hunters finding lost loot from robberies, shipwrecks, etc sometimes discover that there are still open insurance claims on their finds, and corporations will swoop in and lay claim to the  treasure hunter's hard earned treasure.

Some of the items that my leads are for could well be confiscated by government due to their archaeological importance, so how do you monetize your work so it is not all for naught?

These days Reality TV seems to be the way some are doing it.   For full disclosure purposes, note that yes, mongst interviews about picking that I have done for a few production companies, I have been approached by one major media corporation about one of my treasure leads. Went through 3 interviews about it, and got to the point that the "big wigs" liked it, and wanted bios of my "team members".  

But, it has since been put on the back burner. Not off the table, but not exactly active. If I came up with something significant, it may well be brought to a front burner, though.

It was said in not so many words that I pretty much need to find the items first, so that they have a "for sure" scenario of finding the stuff.  I can't afford to undertake this endeavour to those extremems myself without some sort of financial backing that allows me to pay my regular bills, as well as expenses for the hunt.

I have thought of starting a gofundme plea for cash, but I can't see that being all that successful...unless the couple hundred readers of this blog want to each toss in $100? Keep in mind, if found, the treasure would change history as it is written! 

Or are there any wealthy folks out there who want to participate in and fund a treasure hunt?

Hmmm?  I am hearing crickets....

That is usual, however. People really don't wish to take risks, or simply do not have the excess cash to take risks with.  I am not a big talker, and I don't pump things up to get people to open their wallets. I err on the side of caution. More pessimistic, I guess, but I do believe in my leads, but there is always a hitch of some sort in any treasure hunting expedition...that is part of the adventure....some adversity. You just have to work through it, or around it.  That's just the way life works. Nothing in life comes easy, to most of us.

Happy hunting folks!

What Treasures Shall the New Year Bring?

Ok, so I have presented you with 8 of my treasure leads so far.

Just to review they were:

(1) Oak Island Treasure - Steam Locomotive

(2) Treasure With The Blackflies - Ancient Dugout Canoe

(3) Treasure Intangible - Mad Trapper's movements and identity

(4) Treasure On A Platter - Hoard of Railway China

(5) Hagar The Horrible Would Be Proud - Norse helmet and sword/dagger

(6) The Manitoba Runestone - Viking Runestone

(7) Fly, Fly Away - WW2 airplane engines in crates

(8) Wild West Outlaw Treasure - Jesse James' horse bridal and Frank James' colt revolver

Now I have two questions for you.

Which one would you dedicate your time to pursuing, if you had the money, time and ability to pursue? 

Realistically, which are worth pursuing, given a lack of time, money and limited abilities?


I look forward to your answers in the comments!

The Manitoba Runestone - Treasure Lead #6

No idea what a runestone is?  Click here to find out.

Yes, I have a lead on a Norse runestone...here in Manitoba!

It, like the Kensington Stone discovered before it, was found tangled in roots of some trees a farmer was taking up while clearing land for cultivation.

This stone was said to be sandstone, which doesn't bode well for preservation, being as stone that would soon weather after the inscription was carved....except this stone's location made it the ideal candidate for preservation underground.

You see, it was located at a spot that would have been lakeshore of one of Manitoba's largest lakes.

If you are familiar with those lakes, you will realize that come winter and spring, the ice can move ashore under certain conditions, and would effectively bulldoze the stone. 

This action would have likely tipped it over and as fate would have it, it seems to have been covered up either at that time, or gradually by further seasons of similar ice and wave action/erosion. The location it was found at is now roughly a mile from the current location of the shore. BUT, when you take into account isostatic rebound, it is located on what used to be the lake shore during the period the Norse could have theoretically traversed the lake system, 900 to 1400 AD. 

Don't bother going looking for it at its discovery site, though. It was removed, and shortly after broken in two pieces. It was then in assorted private hands.

However, I have traced it to its last known location. Just a matter of doing some door knocking now. This might just be the first treasure I do locate out of the ones I have already listed....or I may find out it was discarded, destroyed due to the owners not knowing what they had. 

Not looking forward to it being that particular outcome.

Either way, there is a photograph of the stone out there, and if you have heard of said stone, and know of where I can get a crisp copy, I'd be grateful for the assistance. 

Hagar the Horrible Would be Proud - Treasure Lead #5

As the title of this posting indicates, this lead has to do with VIKINGS!

No, not the football team...

Actual, real VIKINGS!

Yes, some may find this lead hard to believe, being that we have been taught for generations that the Vikings never made it inland. 

This has proven false.

There have been too many discoveries of Norse artifacts dating between 900 and 1400 AD on Canadian and American soil...actually FROM our soil. These are artifacts that line up and fit together (forming a perfect path down through to the Kensington Stone) all too well for the naysayers....but, the whole debate about Norse incursion into the interior of Canada and the USA is an entirely separate topic, though it is intertwined with this lead.  I won't bother debating the whole Norse in Norther America subject here, as I don't wish to bore some of you with the hows, whys, whats, wheres, etc....but, be forewarned, I have a couple leads of this nature.

In this case, the items in question consist of a Norse helmet and sword, hidden in a cave in a wilderness area of Manitoba.

The lead was given to me from the person who saw the items as a child, who stumbled upon them due to his curiosity about the contents of said cave which was in a rock face. He and another child climbed said rock face to check out the small cave, and looked in, seeing a helmet with a spike on top, as well as a dagger or sword.

This was over 50 years ago, but, being in the area it was/is, I suspect the artifacts are still sitting in the cave untouched.

The description of the helmet as having a spike on top initially gave me the impression that it sounded like an early militia type helmet or a perhaps a German Pickelhaube. 

However, the location made no sense if it was a German helmet, and unlikely, though not out of the realm of possibility, of being a early militia helmet of some sort.

Considering the general location, it would make perfect sense for it to be a particular styles of Norse helmet, which was made in such a way that there is a point on the top. (On a side note, the typical horned "Viking helmet" seen in movies, etc, is essentially an Operatic/Hollywood fabrication) 

But, I will not know for sure it is Norse, of course, until I am able to see for myself.  Even if it is another type of helmet, it certainly does not belong in the middle of the wilderness.

What ever type of helmet it is, it is sure to be a treasure, and bring up a new mystery of how it and the dagger/sword got there.

Go Vikings!

Actual Norse helmet.

From the article on "Viking" horned helmets