[Jack Black]

Using this same thinking wouldn’t every pre-1933 gold coin be FedGov’s property (because they were supposed to be turned in?).

Of course lots of them were in foreign hands at that time, and if you lived in France FDR’s little dictatorial decrees were not your law, so that coin was still legal.

I must be missing something. I don’t get it.

[TheRhinelander]

They are reinforcing FDR’s order. Since there was no paper work trail they confiscated them. Not cool. Blame FDR.

[LukeL]

The article is incorrect. Pre 1933 gold coins could be saved if they had collector or numismatic value (this was basically to keep coin collectors happy) but they had no monetary value, nor could they be exchanged for paper or silver after the deadline.

The 1933 Double Eagle was never offically monetized and thus was not suppose to leave the mint. The King Farouk specimen was monetized in a ceremony where a new $20.00 was taken out of circulation and the coin added to keep the books balanced.

This also is not like the 1913 V Nickel or other examples where mint employees illegally made coins and smuggled them out of the mint.

[KarlInOhio]

Using this same thinking wouldn’t every pre-1933 gold coin be FedGov’s property (because they were supposed to be turned in?).

Under Executive Order 6102 you could keep 5 ounces of gold plus rare coins and gold for industrial use.