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Make sure you pay your 28% tax on the coin when you sell it.

"Correct. If you had purchased it yourself, you could knock off the purchase price, and only pay on the difference.

However, since you paid nothing, you're on the hook for the whole enchilada."

Apparently you're both rather confused on the tax laws:

I received some gold coins as a gift from my parents and then sold them a month later. Must I report it as a gain and if so where?
In the case of a gift, the donor is responsible for reporting the gift; the recipient of a gift is not required to pay taxes on the gift. The annual gift tax exclusion for 2014 is $14,000 (same for 2013).
For more information, see IRS Estate and Gift Taxes.
The original purchase price would be what the giver not you paid for it.
So, if you received a $100 espresso machine as a wedding gift, and later sold it for $100 or less, there's nothing to report.
On the other hand, if you sold the espresso machine for more than $100, you'd only report the profit you made above the original $100 purchase price.

Courtesy of: https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/2642257-i-received-some-gold-coins-as-a-gift-from-my-parents-and-then-sold-them-a-month-later-must-i-report-it-as-a-gain-and-if-so-where

Excellent. I had thought that if you had no initial outlay (at least on paper), then you had to pay the full freight.

Forgot about the "gift" aspect.

HOWEVER - what if the donor didn't report them as a gift? Will they be dragged into a mess [for not reporting] even though their total gift for that year was only the two gold coins [and obviously less than $14,000]?

This deserves further clarification.

If one inherits property through an estate, they receive a stepped up cost basis on the property. In other words, the basis for the new owner is the value of the property on the date of the decedent’s death. If the new owner subsequently sells the property, capital gains tax would be due on the net proceeds received above the stepped up cost basis amount.

Conversely, if one receives a gift of property while the donor is alive, the new owner takes the donor’s cost basis. In that case, if the new owner subsequently sells the property, capital gains tax would be due on the net proceeds received above the donor’s cost basis.

The issue of a gift tax is an entirely different topic from capital gains tax. It is correct that there is a $14,000 annual person-to-person exclusion before gift taxes come into play (to an unlimited number of people). However, each individual donor has approximately $5.45 million in lifetime gifting BEYOND the annual exclusion that can be used up before any gift tax is due via the donor.