A California couple discovered $10 million worth in gold coins buried on their property in Gold Country, North California.
The couple who wish not to be named found 1,427 rare, mint-condition gold coins dating back to 1847 and 1894.
According to David Hall, co-founder of Professional Coin Grading Service, the discovery of the fortune is the biggest in the U.S. history.
"It's quite a story. People were walking along on their property in Northern California, noticed something, began digging and they found cans of gold coins," Hall said, reports CNN. "It should have happened to you and me."
Although the face value of the coins comes around $28,000, some coins are so rare that the couple could get at least $1 million each for them, reports the Associated Press.
"I don't like to say once-in-a-lifetime for anything, but you don't get an opportunity to handle this kind of material, a treasure like this, ever," said Don Kagin, veteran numismatist and representative of the family. "It's like they found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow." Without disclosing much about the identity of the couple, Kagin said they both are middle-aged husband and wife who spent most of their year on their rural property in California's Gold Country.
It is still not clear who buried those coins at the place. The$5, $10 and $20 coins were stored somewhat in chronological order in six cans, David McCarthy, chief numismatist for Kagin Inc. of Tiburon, told AP. He explained that the way the coins were buried indicated the cans were being used as a personal bank. Most of the coins were minted in San Francisco; one $5 gold coin was from Georgia.
