If any of you have read metal detecting/treasure forums on the net long enough, you will know that, from time to time, treasure hunters from the Phillipines chime in. And .... of course.... their culture is steeped in treasure legends, lore, etc.... And humorously their questions will generally focus on the cache hunting aspect of md'ing. They'll inquire about the "deepest seeking detectors", because, of course, they're after the "big game", haha. And sometimes about getting investors (of which most are found to be scams).
Well about a year or two ago, there was a thread title on one of the national md'ing forums, where someone had claimed to have "found a treasure". And when you opened the thread, the fellow was from the Phillipines, inquiring about detectors that could go 3 to 5 meters deep (that's 10 to 15+ ft. deep!). And about heavy equipment to extract the treasure from the ground, blah blah blah. The entire context was DISTINCTLY and SPECIFICALLY couched in terms of "found" (past tense).
Various md'rs chimed in to answer the fellows technical questions. Eg.: GPR, versus 2-box units, etc.... I too chimed in, and told the fellow the abilities of 2-box units, since I have experience with them. Eg.: how deep he could expect to go on a toaster sized object, versus a refrigerator sized object, versus a volkswagon size, etc..
But I figured this, like many others before him, was nothing more than a scam to recruit investors. So I decided to "play with him" a bit. Asking him to share more details about this treasure he had "found" (yet without having to tell *exact* location, or his name, etc.....). Questions like: "If you FOUND it, then what the h*ck do you need a metal detector for now?" This went back and forth for multiple posts, where I was NOT going to let him evade the subject. Turns out he wasn't looking for investors. He was a sincere well-meaning treasure hunter.
And sure enough also: it turns out, he didn't exactly "find" the treasure, but had narrowed it down to a specific location. Eg.: a certain cave, or mountain, etc... All he needed to do now, was pinpoint it exactly, within this area. Huh ? And whereas his initial post had hinted or implied that he'd "seen" the treasure, well, that too faded upon further scrutiny. Turns out that those who he got his tips (maps, clues, etc...) had "seen" it. Are you starting to smell an over-zealous starry-eyed treasure seeker? But the ENTIRE TIME, in his own mind's eyes, he had "found" it. He wasn't anything less than sincere.
See how that works? The human mind wants SO HARD TO BELIEVE, "lest you be left out". Why do you think all the goofy treasure magazines of the 1970s sold so many editions, and were so fun to read? Each one was filled with "lost mines", and "stagecoach robberies", blah blah blah. Throw in some faded newspaper clippings, some "he said she said", and a drawing of a miner posed next to his buro, and then..... golly, it MUST be gospel truth?
But alas, this will fall on deaf ears. The faithful will never disbelieve in treasure legends, and will defend them to the hilt.
