SEASON 13, EPISODE 4, “THE SMOKING GUN” EPISODE ANALYSIS
- Daniel Spino
- 34 minutes ago
- 7 min read
In this week’s episode, “THE SMOKING GUN”, the show began at the MONEY PIT AREA, where the Oak Island team continued their sonic drilling program. A new borehole was started named F- 5.5. This location is only a few feet from where the highest levels of precious metal content was found in the water samples. The team is hoping this is indicative of treasure being located in this area.
The action then took us to the WESTERN SWAMP AREA, where the Oak Island team continued their exploration. After some excavation, the team uncovered more wooden stakes in a 50 by 50-foot area. The alignment was erratic and not linear in nature, and the team felt it was strange. It was noticed that there appeared to be a layer of rocks underneath on top of a sand layer. This was similar to both the Stone Road construction and the Paved Area on the Eastern side of the Swamp. It was suggested that Dr. Spooner be brought in for his opinion of this area of interest and have the wooden stakes C-14 tested.
The action shifted to the LAB, where the Oak Island team met to discuss the lead artifact that was unearthed on Lot 5 only a few yards from the Rectangular feature. The artifact was described as decorative and was found in close in proximity to, what was called the “Lead Barter Token” that Gary Drayton called a “Scalloped Disc”. This will be discussed in the Analysis section. Archeometallurgist Emma Culligan mentioned that map scans showed that the piece did not appear to be decorative in nature but appeared that way due to usage that caused striations. Emma said the lead was quite pure, with some tin content. She said it was not recent with a date from the 1700’s to possibly 1600’s. The piece is a good candidate for laser ablation which would provide the team with more information.
We were then taken back to the WESTERN SWAMP AREA, where the Oak Island team continued its investigation. Geoscientist Dr. Ian Spooner was summoned to provide his opinion of what the team had discovered. He mentioned that the rocks appeared stacked on top of each other with a smooth underlayer. He mentioned that the rot on the top of the stakes indicated an older date. He also mentioned that the construction was very similar to the Cobbled Path and Stone Road. He mentioned that it appeared to him that the stakes were used to mark where to lay down the cobble and stones that created these features. To proceed further in this area the team would need to apply for a permit which would take some time.
We were then taken to LOT 5 where the Oak Island Team continued its search for artifacts. The area is close to the location where the six roman coins have been found. After some searching, metal detectorist Gary Drayton had a hit and unearthed another piece of lead. It appeared to be elongated and it was bagged and tagged to be sent to Emma for further testing. After more searching, Gary had another hit and found what he thought was a handle to a pair of scissors. Then he located another portion that appeared to be the opposite handle. Gary then speculated that pieces fit together and may have been a Horse Tack Bridle. Archeologist Laird Niven looked at the piece and would take it to the lab for further analysis and testing.
The action shifted back to the MONEY PIT Area, where the Oak Island team along with Choice Drilling continued their drilling operation of Borehole F -5.5. The team reached the Solution Channel and hit bedrock at 204 feet. They brought up a soil sample from 206 feet. It appeared to be loose material and water. After scanning the sample, a hunk of metal was discovered. It was quickly speculated that this was a half of a coin that was cut in two. The team became excited until Operations Manager Scott Barlow informed them that it wasn’t a coin but a piece of a button of a drill bit. This was from the previous work in Caisson TB-1. The team was disappointed but felt it meant a coin could still be down there somewhere.
The scene shifted back to the LAB, where the Oak Island team met to discuss the artifact found earlier on Lot 5. What Gary thought could be a Horse Tack Bridle, was confirmed to be a pair of scissors. Emma demonstrated how they could not have been connected by the difference in the metal at the break points. She mentioned the artifact had a high chlorine level and sodium which indicated it had spent a long time in salt water. The piece had minimal impurities, and she dated it from the 1700’s to possibly late 1600’s. She stated it was British. Rick Lagina suggested that Laird look in a book he had of old scissors, and an example was found that appeared similar to the artifact which was from the mid 1600’s. Who left these scissors in that area of Oak Island?
The scene took us back to Lot 5, where Rick and Gary continued to explore the area for more artifacts. They stumbled upon a strange alignment of stones that were in a circular pattern. They believed it may be another stone structure. Laird was brought over for his opinion. He also observed that rocks appeared stacked on top of each other and created a circular area. In the center there appeared to be another flat rock on its side that was deliberately put upright. Laird thought this did not mark a property line but the location itself. Laird mentioned he would bring the Archeological team in and bisect the feature to get more information.
The episode concluded at the WESTERN SWAMP AREA, where the Oak Island team continued its investigation. The team moved about 40 feet north of the previous spot while they wait for permits. They are allowed to work in this area and hope to see if it is a continuation of the feature that was just discovered. After some scanning, some pieces of charcoal are found. Charcoal was also discovered on the Stone Road feature, and it was speculated that it could be Portuguese. Although the testing of the Stone Road Charcoal was never released publicly. Also, Portugal was not part of the map shown on the show during Season 9 which identified where the charcoal came from. The team then unearthed a piece of iron at the side of a boulder. It was heavy but hollow, which seemed unusual. Gary mentioned it was hand forged with a notch at the top. He speculated it could be a Petronel, a short single shot gun from the 1500’s to 1600’s. The artifact would be sent to Emma for further testing. Until next week.
DANIEL’S ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARY:
In the episode the infamous “Lead Barter Token” was mentioned again, which is a regular occurrence. The piece is described on the “Curse of Oak Island” website as follows, “This small disc with scalloped edges was found near the circular depression on Lot 5 in 2022. Laser ablation testing revealed that it may be related to the 14th century French lead cross that was discovered at Smith’s Cove in 2017. Could this medieval barter token be another piece of evidence that connects the Knights Templar to the Oak Island mystery?” The problem with this finding is its inaccurate. While the lead in the piece looks to have been repurposed and old, just like the lead in the Lead Cross, the disc clearly appears to be a Whirligig/Buzzer. This was a toy that was made and used on a string that made a buzzing noise. This type of toy was commonplace among British soldiers and in British North America in the 18th Century. It appears that the lead was in the form of a musket ball that was melted down and pressed into a whirligig and found on Oak Island.
Yet, Numismatist Sandy Campbell claimed that the piece was a “Roman Barter Token” because he found a similar comparative example in the British Museum’s Archive. The problem with this was that the archeological site where it was found was a mixed site of different ages of artifacts in Great Britain. The Roman identification was incorrect, which this author had previously discovered. The piece was taken to Italy by the team during their trip to Rome where it was confirmed not to be Roman. So that part of the identification was dropped but it’s still identified as a “Lead Barter Token” with no evidence to support it. What’s interesting about all this is that the artifact clearly has two holes on the front of it, which identifies it as a whirligig. Although on the back, one of the holes has been partially filled in from wear and tear. In all the pictures of the piece on the show, it is always displayed with the back view, with the partially filled in hole and not the pictured with the two holes. Why would this be so?
Please follow our weekly episode analyses during Season 13, along with articles from the original “Compendium/Blockhouse Blog”, and special investigations and features involving Oak Island. Feel free to reach out to us for questions, comments, information and any theories to our email, theoakislandcompendium@gmail.com
Happy Thanksgiving and Good day from the Compendium!
Daniel and Charlotte
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