There was major excitement on this week’s The Curse of Oak Island when the team learned about the discovery of an ancient Roman coin thought to date between 300 BC and 600 AD.
Last night’s episode was full of lots of new information that will cause the guys to think again. At the Money Pit, the borehole drilling team went in search of a tunnel but was left flummoxed when they found a new shaft instead.
But perhaps the most significant discovery from last night centered around a tiny artifact from Gary Drayton’s top pocket.
Alex Lagina and Jack Begley invited coin expert numismatist Sandy Campbell into the Interpretative Center to take a look at the half coin Gary discovered last week on Lot 5. And in the calmest soberest possible manner, he delivered some earth-shattering news.
After looking at the data regarding the chemical composition and examining the coin up close, Sandy ruled that it came from ancient Rome. He suggested it was either Roman or Byzantium, which was the successor empire to the Romans based at Constantinople.
Sandy dated it as somewhere between 300 BC and 600 AD, but he leaned more toward a Roman origin rather than the later Byzantium era.
What is a Roman coin doing on Oak Island?
A somewhat dazed-looking Rick Lagina demanded to know what made him think that! Sandy assured him, “the design is definitely Roman.” He pointed to the image of a tree and a person and insisted they were Roman designs.
The next question was, what on earth is it doing on Oak Island? This was something Sandy was unable to answer and something that will need further investigation.
As we’ve come to expect, narrator Robert Clotworthy began making some wild connections, suggesting the coin may be related to the Roman road visited in Portugal last season and the swamp’s stone road.
It’s possible he’s correct, but the guys will need to do a lot more proper investigation.
A tunnel turns into a shaft at the Oak Island Money Pit
Meanwhile, at the Money Pit, the drill team was attempting to chase a tunnel they happened upon a few weeks ago near the garden shaft. This tunnel had been encountered at a shallow 70 feet leading the guys to speculate it may lead to an offset chamber.
The guys decided a new borehole was needed to see where the tunnel led. However, Terry Matheson and Charles Barkhouse were pretty shocked when at a mere 39 feet, they hit a lot of wood. They quickly realized that this was the supposed tunnel they were searching for and that it was actually a brand-new shaft.
This came as a big surprise as they don’t have any historical data stating there’s a shaft at this location, and it is definitely going to need further investigation.
The recovered wood beams looked to be cut using a pit saw, suggesting they were cut before the industrial age, perhaps around the 15th century. Craig Tester, noting the rings, suggested the wood be sent for dendrochronology dating.
The guys are hoping that the garden shaft project will soon get the go-ahead to continue. Once that shaft is stabilized, the Dumas Mining company will be able to burrow 20 feet toward this shaft, so it can be properly investigated.
The Curse of Oak Island airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on History.
How odd that Rick Lagina has turned into a walking billboard, changing caps with almost every scene. What a pimp! At least Marty, Billy, and Tom Nolan are advertising their own businesses, and have consistently done so. Just another log on this clown-show of a fire.
It seems like Craig is the only “real” person among the main cast. Rick is a cornucopia of cliches, drama, faux-gravitas, and overacting. Charles, and especially Gary and Jack are the epitome of over-acting and nonsensically excessive exuberance.
Marty is usually ok, but is easily swayed by Rick’s nonsense. Most of the others are yes-men.
“(They)are the epitome of over-acting and nonsensically excessive exuberance.”
The irony. Read what you wrote. This should say “Jim from downing is the epitome of over-acting and nonsensically excessive exuberance.(in his [unfounded]criticism and [excessive] reply)”
You have to remember that Marty is a lawyer, an engineer and a millionaire. He didn’t go into this blind and must have read Robert Dunfield’s conclusions before he bought in dispelling nearly every treasure myth out there. No, he bought into “Oak Island Tours, Inc.” as a money making venture. Not thinking he’d ever find treasure. And boy, they have made a fortune there given how long this show has lasted and the various spinoffs. Rick, on the other hand, may have been a true believer at one time, but now he’s just playing his part in Marty’s overall scheme with his folksy charm. Even he has to now know the futility of their quest. Keep in mind, this show is produced by the same folks that bring you the lies, distortion and unbridled speculation that is Ancient Aliens. And they’ve been milking that farce for years and years now.
The spinoffs though… remember the Civil War Gold fiasco? Now that was comedy. A wholly made up treasure tale that evolved haphazardly right up to the premiere. They’d point fingers and tarnish past reputations on a whim, then they’d have to reboot when faced with the impossibilities of their narrative; literally changing roles for the players and characters of their own myth. Then the main guy crushes his hip trying to enter the water off his boat to scuba dive. Now that was entertainment!. Too bad that never got a season two. It was comedy gold.
But the latest spinoff can be even more comical with the Lagina brothers pretending to be treasure hunting experts despite finding absolutely no treasure. Ever. Then they show up on the scene with real treasure hunters, like the sunken steamship found in a cornfield with true research, mapping and competent use of ground penetrating radar to pretend they’re part of the treasure seeking brethren; unintentionally revealing their own incompetency with their fake treasure hunt.
Excellent vitrol!!! Keep up the good hate…. Why anyone would watch something with such disdain for the subject matter, be so dismissive and condescending of all the characters- is fascinating. Get rid of your hate and happiness may follow….
Oh… calling me a hater. Brilliant. So you are okay with folks just making up history? You’re okay with folks lying about what has gone before to make a buck on a television show? You want your children to learn absolute nonsense from a cable television channel that purports to be educational? Well, yeah… I suppose you’re right. I hate all that stuff. And you should too. Unless maybe they’ve fooled you and you’re too proud to admit same. So get rid of your ignorance and truth may follow…
They should go down in history for their discoveries and dedic