When were these keys lost?

[BlamKing]

My dad lost a chain in the woods last week so I tryed to find it with my metal detector. He ended up just seeing the chain, but I did find these other items. They are all fairly identifiable, except maybe that decorative piece with the scrolls. What I was really wondering is how old these items might be. Also, how might I go about cleaning those keys? Thanks.

 

[sectshun8]

Nice finds indeed... I wouldnt put it past those keys being pre-1900... they do however look even older...

 

[foreverRich]

Everything there looks pretty old, but it is pretty hard to date the keys, because they still make them like that. As for cleaning, since they are steel and pretty rusty, cleaning would remove the rust to the point you wouldn't have anything left. You could brush the loose rust off with a wire brush and then spray them with anti rust paint to stop the rust and preserve them. They would still be neat to save in a collection of keys.

 

[Belangers]

My guess is they are 30 plus years old.

 

[Deep silver]

very nice .......those keys are quite old. Looking at the amount of detioration on the keys and the square nail I would say early 1900's ........you may be onto a great hunting spot .......worth spending some more time without a doubt

 

[Carol K]

The keys look rather fragile.

Do they seem like they would crumble if you cleaned them?

I definitely would NOT put them in a tumbler.

Maybe a soak in olive oil would loosen the corrosion?

 

[BlamKing]

Thanks for all the replies! The keys are pretty corroded, but still fairly solid. At least they didn't feel like they would fall apart when I scrubbed them with my fingers. I might try soaking them in olive oil, and I will definitely search that spot some more once I get my new detector.

 

[geodawn]

Wow, those are some old keys. Nice finds!

 

[afpilot64]

By looking at the keys, 1900 or earlier seems obvious, especially with the intricate metal piece. Seems like you found a good spot so you need to go back and dig up more goodies!

 

[fiddler]

The scrolled thing is a boot scraper.

 

[BlamKing]

The scrolled thing is a boot scraper.

WOW, thanks for the clue fiddler. I never would have guessed that. Plus, after a Google image search:
(This one is a copy by the way)

 

[BlamKing]

A little more research found this period one, apparently early 1850's, and a link if anyone wants to buy the one pictured.
http://www.urbanremainschicago.com/item.aspx?itemID=1344

 

[wyoming hunter]

my mom collected keys like that ill go find some and see if they match your design

 

[wyoming hunter]

these are simaler to yours

 

[Carol K]

Nice research guys!!!