SPRINGFIELD -- A Springfield man using a metal detector to hunt for artifacts on John Street in Springfield Monday afternoon found an old artillery shell that had to be disposed of by a state police bomb disposal team.

"I've found coins, jewelry, that kind of stuff before," treasure hunter Hector Martinez said. "Not no shell, I can tell you that."

The shell was about a foot long and three or four inches around, Martinez said. He found it at about 1:15 p.m.

He found it in a small lawn near the Mt Calvary Baptist Church, 17 John. St. The church is in an old industrial part of Springfield adjacent to where Interstate 91 was constructed. The shell was buried and partially exposed by Martinez, who then called 911. The scene was cleared by 3 p.m.

Police did not disrupt traffic in the area during the investigation.

Bernard J. "B.J." Calvi, city fire commissioner, said this part of Springfield was a busy place during World War II with the Springfield Armory, where rifles were manufactured and weaponry tested, right up the hill with active rail lines nearby.

"This happens from time to time," Calvi said, adding that a similar shell was recently removed from the Connecticut River.

State troopers were able to safely transport the shell to John S Lane & Son in Westfield. The quarry allows troopers to safely dispose of ordnance on its property as a public service.