A Canadian child is proof that major scientific discoveries do not always have to come from graying researchers with fantasy equipment. Two years ago, Lucas Atchison, 8 years old, made a family trip to Point Farms provincial park in Ontario. Armed with a metal detector which he had just received as a birthday present, Atchison conscientiously scanned the region, hoping to hear this coveted “BIP”.
Finally, he did it. By digging impatiently in the site, Lucas discovered a peak of metal, which his father initially rejected as something used to attach boats. But the budding archaeologist insisted that they dig more. Soon they discovered another point attached to a piece of wood. The father-son pair had probably come across a two-year shipwreck.
“We were on the beach, we released our metal detector, and as soon as we set it up, Ding! It was a hint of the sinking,” recently told Lucas at the CBC.
The discovery of Lucas led to a complete excavation
Once the duo has achieved what they had found, they alerted the staff of the provincial parks, who then contacted the Ontario Non -profit Ontario Heritage Committee (OMHC). The OMHC met Lucas in 2023, but it took several years to obtain the regulatory permits necessary to search the area more. Finally, earlier this month, they started to dig. Although still in the first stadiums, the archaeologist Marine Scarlett Janusas told the CBC that the “double frames” of the sinking suggest that this is the variety of the schooner.
The work must still be done to definitively confirm the identity of the ship, but archaeologists working on the project think that they may have a probable competitor in the St. Anthony. This ship was sinking near Lake Huron in 1856 during a trip carrying wheat between Chicago and Buffalo. The researchers on the site currently create sketches from the wreckage from above and on the side to analyze it in more detail. They would also have examined the insurance requirements of the 19th century for ships, which could provide clues to the identity of the ship and when it sank. These documents describe the specifications of ships at the time, such as the number of fixings required in executives. By referencing these details against the files of missing vessels, they hope to permanently identify the wreckage.
In relation: [Amateur metal detector uncovers massive Iron Age treasure hoard]
You never know what you could find
The discovery of Lucas is a good reminder that, even today, in our apparently mapped and modernized world, you never know what you could find with a faithful metal detector. His case is far from unique. In recent months, a Romanian man has used a metal detector to discover an old treasure of Roman pieces. Even more recently, an Scottish has discovered a 4,000 -year -old ax buried in his family farm. Sometimes people may not even achieve the meaning of their discoveries until much later. Example: an Australian prospector named David Hole found a large rock with a metal detector in 2016, believing that it is a golden nugget. It was only recently that he learned that it was in fact a meteorite of $ 4.6 billion.
As for the sinking of Ontario, the researchers finally say that they plan to reprimand the discovery in an anaerobic environment without oxygen. This framework could help preserve it by protecting it from the natural degradation caused by parasites and other organisms. Lucas, on the other hand, may just start a long trip with his trusted metal detector.
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