Featured Antique gold watch chain

Haha, yes! When I see good stuff, I always look twice!

 

I have put a great deal of time, effort & money into acquiring the knowledge I have that sometimes enables me to spot an overlooked treasure. Doubt that if I opened their eyes I would be compensated as an expert appraiser by a grateful seller.

 

I would feel very weird asking for money too but I would also not be happy giving away hundreds of dollars in gold I am still in pain from gathering (sore back). Ive reunited many lost items to their owners including cash. If I had found this on the sidewalk it would be a completely different story for me. I would do whatever I could to find the owner. I’ve gone so far as to mail lost items to owners. In this case it’s something that seems to have been lost for a long time and the owner has surely given up hope of ever finding it. It was a TON of hard work. I spent probably 7 hours of what amounts to moderately hard labor (bending over and digging a lot on a cold windy beach). While I would be out metal detecting anyways its only in the hopes of finding valuable or historically interesting items. It’s insanely rare to actually find a valuable item doing this so when you finally do you don’t want to give it away. It wasn’t just the 7 hours that day it was hundreds of hours since I last found a gold item. With that all said I would still rather the item end up in the owners hands all things being equal. I know I for one would be thrilled if presented the opportunity to buy back an important sentimental item from my life for what would amount to pennies on the dollar of the original price. Again I would still feel really weird asking but I feel like it would be better to give them the choice than not. The amount of work it took me and the amount of time that has elapsed makes this different to me than returning something lost on the street hours previous. Maybe it shouldn’t though. I’ll post and then worry about it I guess.

 

I found a smart phone at the golf course....
I found a way to get it back to the owner.....& he offered me a C note....which I refused....but he pressed the point....so I accepted.

I found a guys wallet , in a down town cinema.
After some detective work....I and my daughter drove over to his condo...but he wasn't there.
Next day I called the number on a business card in the wallet ....a high end clothing store...& found out he was the owner.
The girl I spoke to said he was out but expected back & you can drop it off here....
I went downtown , but he wasn't there....& I said OK, I'll come back because I wanted to put it in his hand....not just leave it !
The girl called him....& he asked her to ask me what was in the wallet.
I told her 2 bills...100 US & 100 CDN.
He said that was right and told her to give me the $100 US bill....with his thanks .
I accepted his generosity !!

The ring you found...if u can get it back to it's rightful owner.....it's up to them to offer a reward........not you. Otherwise melt it.

 

As I said, a really interesting line of deliberation, with no 'right' answer. You have an investment in your finds just as I do in mine, so the situations are analogous in that way. And sounds as though you are willing to do more than I am to reunite sentimental items with those who lost them. I don't have a problem with the idea of asking for some reasonable remuneration for the ring.

 

I don't have a problem with the idea of asking for some reasonable remuneration for the ring.

I do.....it's kinda like holding it for ransom...

What if they can't afford what you're asking?
Do you then barter...dicker....make a payment plan ???

Reasonable is fraught with dilemma...... also. !

You start out doing a good thing...& then possibly , put someone on the spot !

See where I'm going with this?

 

and what if you show up at the door and the guy sez, that's from my exwife & my new wife doesn't want to see it !!!!!!!

Do you stand there bitching about all the hard work it took to find it...AND NOW...all the extra work it took to track you down.....drive 69 miles in the rain to bring it to you......yadda yadda yadda ...........?????

 

If ya can't do it out of the goodness of your heart.....believing you're doing a Mitzva ... with no thought of remuneration ....... melt it & enjoy your good luck on a nice find !!

 

If someone is touched enuf to offer a reward....accept it graciously !!!

 

Totem post..!! Heehehe!!!

 

Never take advantage of someone's bad luck, that's what I say. It is not like a seller who doesn't want to put in the extra work, this belongs to someone who didn't want to lose it in the first place.
A wedding band is so close to the heart. Many people are gutted when they lose something like that. If someone's toddler went missing and you happened to find him/her, would you ask money too?
If they want to give you something as a show of gratitude, that's fine. I wouldn't take it, I would be happy I made someone else happy, but I guess it is acceptable. But you don't even know if they have the money to spare.
As for your backache, you would have had that anyway, going out metal detecting. It is your choice, not their fault, so they don't have to reimburse you.

 

Couple of years back, we found a wallet on the bus. No cash, but lots of cards, including an Oyster and a driving licence. The licence had an adress in Wales, but all the other cards were local, WITHOUT addresses.

So, I did detective work - this was eleven at night, but thank god for t'internet. Tracked down the girl's mama in Wales,phoned her, said nothing to worry about, but I've found your daughter's wallet. Mama said, in broad Welsh, that daughter had been to a hen night and was probably pissed as a fart. Five minutes later a VERY sloshed young woman phones me. I wait up while she walks two miles to get to me: no oyster card, so no bus. Wallet and girl reunited, she hugs me and staggers off.

Two days later a sober young woman rings my doorbell clutching a HUGE bouquet and a box of chocs - she said her mama had brought her up to say thank you and in any event, mama was also very grateful.

I still wonder how the hell she remembered where I lived.

 

Haha! Great story!

 

Wonderful story, you and she did very well!

 

Your comparison with a lost toddler is excellent! You put the right words on what I thought.

 

Just some quick and dirties of the ring I mentioned. I normally wouldn't get a hand into a shot, but...tough. The stone isn't as colored as I remembered it, but it's definitely not a D. For what I paid I'm not complaining!

 

nice ring !!

 

Beautiful! Thats a nice Old European. Look at that tiny table! I love it. The gallery is stunning!
A lot of old cuts are low color. I have several.
They have so much character!

 

Really beautiful ring- so intricate and classy.