$100 million coin collection, buried for decades, up for auction

A vast coin collection, much of which was buried underground for more than 50 years, is expected to fetch in excess of $100 million at auction, according to experts.

A vast coin collection, much of which was buried underground for more than 50 years, is expected to fetch in excess of $100 million at auction, according to experts. The Traveller Collection, thought to be the most expensive coin collection to ever come to auction, will be sold off over the next three years - with the first sale taking place on May 20. Whatever the outcome, it is the origin story of this valuable set of coins that is so remarkable. It features coins from more than 100 territories around the globe, ranging in age from ancient times to the modern era. But what makes the lot, set to be auctioned by Numismatica Ars Classica, even more extraordinary is the fact that the majority of the coins were buried underground for half a century. According to a press release about the sale sent to CNN, the original collector - who has not been identified - first began buying gold coins after the Wall Street Crash of 1929. He soon developed “a taste for coins with great historical interest, beauty and rarity” and eventually had in his possession around 15,000 coins. The man and his wife spent the 1930s travelling extensively through the Americas and Europe, picking up rare and historically significant coins as they went - while also compiling a detailed archive of their purchases.