A man in Kentucky unearthed hundreds of Civil War-era gold coins in a cornfield, and experts believe they could be worth millions of dollars.
Experts say the coins, known as “The Great Kentucky Hoard,” are dated from 1840 to 1862 and are estimated to be worth over well over $2 million.
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“Underneath were just these phenomenally beautiful, preserved coins,” Certified Collectibles Group Executive Vice President Andrew Salzberg told NBC affiliate WAVE-TV.
Salzberg added the coins were preserved so well because they were buried, so they were not exposed to air.
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According to Numismatic Guaranty Company, the organization that certified the coins, the collection includes a group of extremely rare 1863 Double Eagles and hundreds of U.S. gold dollars dated from 1850 to 1862.
Some of the rarest coins in the collection are eighteen 1863-P $20 Gold Liberty coins, which according to GovMint. "can command “a six-figure price.”
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"The Civil War was a time of great turmoil in Kentucky. Many families were pitted against one another, and Kentucky saw much conflict," NGC said. "The Great Kentucky Hoard may have been a result of this conflict, with the coins lost for over 150 years until they were unearthed in a cornfield."
Even though the discovery is being dubbed by the NGC as "the discovery of a lifetime," officials are not releasing the identity of the man who found the coins, how he found them and the location of the cornfield.
