From Watches to a Safe, People Reveal Best Metal Detecting Finds in Post

Redditors recently revealed their best finds while metal detecting, from a full safe with passports and money to numerous pieces of jewelry.

The viral Reddit post, titled, "People who metal detect on beaches, in parks, etc., What's your best find," has been upvoted 19,100 times since being posted on February 24 by u/TheRealJayAre in the subreddit "Ask Reddit."

According to Archaeology and Metal Detecting Magazine, in 1874 the first metal detector prototype was created by Gustave Pierre Trouvé. Alexander Graham Bell learned of it, making a metal detector to try to find a bullet in President James Garfield's chest, although he died of his injury.

Gerhard Fischer then created the very first hand-held metal detector in 1925. By the time the 1930s came around, the metal detector was available for sale to the masses.

There were 2,600 comments revealing things people have found while metal detecting. Some people recounted the finds of others they know. One user said a man in Hawaii told them he does scuba diving for work with a metal detector out farther from where the waves break in front of the resorts.

"He said he has found $50k gold Rolexes, 4ct diamond rings, all kinds of crazy stuff," the Redditor revealed. "He could have been lying, but I'd believe it. Rich people, covered in sun lotion, jostled by a wave, and oops, there it goes."

Others revealed stories about class rings that had been returned to their owners thanks to metal detecting. "Someone with a metal detector found my husband's high school class ring on the banks of a local river," a Redditor said. "He had lost it during a rowing event about 15 years prior."

Another metal detector user revealed they found a "white gold tennis bracelet with diamonds and sapphires," revealing, "Literally everyone tried to rip me off for it, so eventually I removed all the stones and would sell two to three links at a time for cash like some peasant from the Bronze Age."

One person recalled their find, which they called "unusual to say the least." The Redditor said they "found a buried safe, and it had an entire family's passports, money clips with $700 worth of money, and two passport visas." They revealed they let the resort know, and it turned out to belong to a family whose room had been robbed that day.

Some found artifacts that can be traced to the past. "When I was a teen, I found a perfectly round metal ball about the size of a large grapefruit at a local beach...turns out it was a cannonball and now sits in a local museum," they said.

A Redditor said they "beach hunt," and they've found a lot of jewelry. "I've found some diamond rings and such, but my favorite is my wife's wedding set," they added. "I found both her engagement ring and wedding band."

Another user said their father does metal detecting in Scotland, and he goes to former battlefields and old Roman camps. "He has found loads of ancient coins over the years, including Roman," the Redditor added. "Whenever he finds something significant, he has to report it to the authorities, and they decide if he gets to keep it or not."

One user found an old artifact that is thousands of years old in northwest Spain. "I found a bronze spearpoint that the museum I gave it to estimated was four to five thousand years old," the Redditor expressed. "That was really pretty thrilling."

Newsweek reached out to u/TheRealJayAre for comment.