- Israel Discovers Huge Hoard of Ancient Gold Coins in Deep Sea Trove
- Largest trove of gold coins in Israel unearthed from ancient harbor
Posted on 02/21/2015 6:29:11 PM PST by kindred
"The silver is mine and the gold is mine,' declares the LORD Almighty." -Haggai 2:8
(Jerusalem, Israel)—[CBN News] A group of divers came across the largest treasure trove of gold coins ever discovered in Israel.
Nearly 2,000 gold coins dating to the 11th century were recovered in an Israel Antiquities Authority salvage mission led by the IAA's Marine Archaeology Unit.
Members of a diving club in the ancient harbor in Caesarea National Park discovered the coins. At first they thought the coin they saw was a toy, but soon realized it was genuine.
They returned to shore and reported the find to the diving club director. He contacted the marine unit, which sent IAA divers to accompany them to the site of the discovery.
Using a metal detector, the divers found nearly 2,000 different-sized coins.
IAA Marine Archaeology Unit director Kobi Sharvit said the recent winter storm exposed the coin cache.
Sharvit said the discovery raised several possible scenarios.
"The discovery of such a large hoard of coins—that had such tremendous economic power in antiquity—raises several possibilities regarding its presence in the seabed," Sharvit said.
The director said the coins could have been anything from tax payments to salaries for the military garrison stationed in Caesarea.
Another possibility is that the coins belonged to a large merchant ship that traded with the cities along the coast.
Meanwhile, IAA numismatist Robert Cole said the coins are in "excellent" condition overall.
"The coins are in an excellent state of preservation, and despite the fact they were at the bottom of the sea for about a thousand years, they did not require any cleaning or conservation intervention from the metallurgical laboratory," Cole said in an IAA press release.
"This is because gold is a noble metal and is not affected by air or water. The coins that were exposed also remained in the monetary circulation after the Crusader conquest, particularly in the port cities through which international commerce was conducted," he explained.
Israeli law stipulates that all antiquities belong to the state. Not reporting or removing finds is punishable by up to five years in jail.
Sharvit said the discovery of the coins underscored the need to "combine the development of the place as a tourism and diving site with restrictions that will allow the public to dive there only when accompanied by inspectors or instructors from the diving club."
Psalms 2:1 Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?
Psalms 2:2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying,
Psalms 2:3 Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.
Psalms 2:4 He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the LORD shall have them in derision.
Psalms 2:5 Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure.
Psalms 2:6 Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.
Psalms 2:7 I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.
Psalms 2:8 Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.
Psalms 2:9 Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.
Psalms 2:10 Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth.
Psalms 2:11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
Psalms 2:12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.
Lets see which slimeball countries step up and claim these coins, saying that Israel should hand them over.
Brian Williams says he remembers losing just such a hoard.
Maybe the Lord Jesus is providing for the Jewish people He is bringing back to Israel the second time. Brian is a democrat and they need to be sent somewhere other than America or Israel.
All of them. That’s the way it always is for these sunken treasures.
02/17/2015
Largest trove of gold coins in Israel unearthed from ancient harbor
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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3258597/posts
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02/20/2015
Israel Discovers Huge Hoard of Ancient Gold Coins in Deep Sea Trove
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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3259647/posts
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I think it's notable that the 11th century is when the Seljuk Turks were in ascendance, pushing back the Byzantines, capturing the Levant, and blocking pilgrimage routes to the Holy Land.
The First Crusade was called at the end of the 11th century, specifically in an attempt to push back against Islamic incursions.
And here we are again.
Wow. Another cache!!
There’s been about six found in the last week.
Sub: Memo to Freepers
Re: Gold Coins
If gold coins are found in your travels. Shut your mouth, melt them down, and sell them in small amounts.
That is all.
Opie
What about the numismatic value?
One twenty gold piece found at the Saddleback hoard in the California Gold Country....an 1866 coin without the motto “In God We Trust”.....is worth one million dollars to a serious coin collector.
It’s melt down value would be what...a couple of thousand dollars?
These 1,000 year old coins found in the waters off Israel are said to be priceless.
That reminds me , I must get my Metal Detector ready for Spring
About the Saddle Ridge find, from Wikipedia:
“Following the initial discovery of the coins, there was widespread speculation that the hoard represented the discovery of the 1901 theft of $30,000 from the San Francisco Mint by employee Walter Dimmick. Kagin’s and the U.S. Mint ruled out this theory, stating that the Saddle Ridge Hoard is unlikely to be part of the mint heist, due to the diversity in the face value and condition of the coins. On March 4, 2014, The U.S. Mint stated that “[they] do not have any information linking the Saddle Ridge Hoard coins to any thefts at any United States Mint facility”, and “[they’ve] done quite a bit of research, and we’ve got a crack team of lawyers, and trust me, if this was U.S. government property we’d be going after it.”
‘Dead Snow II: Red Versus Dead’.
Norwegians on vacation find a box of Nazi gold in a cabin up in the mountains. A company of Nazi zombies kills all of them but one, biting him on the arm. He cuts his own arm off with a Jonsered chainsaw (See Ash, Evil Dead) but awakes and is horrified to find the arm has been surgically reattached—because it is the Arm of Satan, giving him supernatural, evil powers.
A Tiger tank stars in this entertaining squarehead 4 star Netflix flick in which the endearing homosexual guy dies a gruesome death, lots of limb separations, decrapitations—they fuel the tank from a tour bus using several yards of intestine—and the moral is, if you find a hoard of gold believe it or not ... you’re best off leaving it alone.
Thanks for posting.
In my post, I called the discovery of the coins the “Saddleback” hoard.....LOL. The Saddleback Valley is in Orange County, Calif. The Saddle Ridge find was in the California Gold Rush Country hours east from the San Francisco area. As a former Californian, I should have known this. That’s what I get for posting late at night!
Anyway, I never believed those coins were from the 1901 theft of $30,000 face value coins from the San Francisco Mint. The guy who stole the coins went to prison....I think at Alcatraz....and if the Saddle Ridge coins were the ones stolen from the Mint, it stand to reason that the thief would have made a bee-line to his hiding place and recovered the coins when he was released from prison.
Also, the Saddle Ridge hoard had several coins minted in the 1830’s at the mint in Dahlonega, Georgia. (Gold was discovered in that area in 1828). It seems unlikely that coins from the San Francisco Mint would have included coins minted at Dahlonega.
Also, I believe the coins stolen from the San Francisco Mint in 1901 were all twenty dollar gold pieces. The Saddle Ridge hoard included gold eagles....$10 coins....as well as $5 gold coins, in addition to the many double eagles....$20 gold coins.
Quite an amazing find overall, with a numismatic value of $10 million.
I remember when discovery of the find was first announced here on FR. Lots of folks were worried that the owners of the property would not be able to enjoy their find. They reasoned, and the quote I posted supports, that the government would look for a way to get it, if they could.
If the couple can get $10MM for their coins, I’m sure the government will still get a share of it somehow.
“If the couple can get $10MM for their coins, I’m sure the government will still get a share of it somehow.”
______________________________________________________
They certainly will. First, there will be federal income taxes. Also, the top income tax rate in California is what, something like 13.2%?
When the husband and/or wife eventually dies, there are also federal and state estate taxes to worry about.
Then the coin dealers who handled the sale would get a fee for their services.
Some of these coins were offered for sale on Amazon last May. I’m not sure if that was the right way to go.....a high end rare coin auction in New York would probably bring top dollar.
Even if the couple received $5 million after taxes and expenses, it would be what my late father used to call “found money.” In this case of this couple, quite literally.
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