Augustus Humbert $50 ?slugs? and other California Gold Rush-era ingots and coins will be displayed at the Sept. 14-16 Long Beach Coin, Stamp and Collectibles Expo.
?This outstanding Gold Rush exhibit presented by Monaco Financial of Newport Beach, Calif., will feature a set of eight high-grade Augustus Humbert United States Assay Office octagonal $50 gold pieces and gold bars recovered from the famous 1857 sinking of the legendary ?Ship of Gold,? the S.S. Central America,? said Ronald J. Gillio, Expo general chairman.
In the photos: Monaco Rare Coins of Newport Beach, Calif., will display a set of eight Augustus Humbert $50 gold ?slugs? like the one at left as part of a $10 million exhibit of Gold Rush-era treasures during the Long Beach Coin, Stamp and Collectibles Expo, Sept. 14-16, in Long Beach, Calif. Also part of the exhibit is the above 754.95-ounce Justh & Hunter ingot recovered from the famous ?Ship of Gold,? the S.S. Central America.
The exhibit is valued at about $10 million.
?I personally believe that the Central America is the most significant thing ever to happen not just to the market for ingots but to the coin market as a whole,? said Adam Crum, vice president of Monaco Financial.
?Assay offices had a huge impact on the development of the American West. The bars, ingots and coins they produced were vital to the economy, so they really have tremendous historical importance,? explained Crum.
Crum and Fred Holabird of Reno, Nev., are co-authors of a new book, Gold Ingots of the Wild West. Copies of the book will be available for purchase at the exhibit during the September expo.
Two of the ingots to be displayed at Long Beach along with historical documents of the Gold Rush-era are a huge Justh & Hunter gold bar that weighs 754.95 ounces, and a 662.28 oz. Kellogg & Humbert ingot, both recovered from the Central America in the late 1980s.
Additionally, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing returns to Long Beach with its exhibit of high-denomination bank notes and Treasury notes, including Series 1934 $100,000 Gold Certificates and a Series A 1976 6-1/4 percent $500 million Treasury Note.
BEP also is expected to display the 12-subject face plate used for printing Series 1934 $10,000 denomination San Francisco Federal Reserve District notes, as well as historic philatelic materials including a modern printer?s proof of the famous 1918 ?Inverted Jenny? 24-cent airmail stamp.
A seminar with tips about online buying and selling of collectibles will be conducted by eBay consultant Troy Thoreson at noon Friday, Sept. 15. Another of the dozen educational programs and meetings to be conducted during the expo will feature Phil Iverson discussing ?The Group of Discovery ? Lewis & Clark? at the Long Beach Coin Club meeting, noon Saturday, Sept. 16.
A children?s treasure hunt will be held Saturday, and a gold coin door prize will be given away each day.
Heritage Auction Galleriesof Dallas, Texas, will conduct a major sale of U.S. and world coins and bank notes during the show.
Expo public hours are Thursday and Friday, Sept. 14 and 15, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and on Saturday, Sept. 16, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The show is closed on Sunday.
A schedule of events can be seen online at www.LongBeachShow.com. Discount admission coupons are also available at the site.
General admission is $6 good for all three days; $4 for members of any coin or stamp club who display a valid membership card; and $3 for seniors 65 and older. Free admission for children ages seven and younger.
The Long Beach Expo will take place in the Long Beach, Calif., Convention Center, 100 S. Pine Ave., Long Beach, Calif.
The Long Beach Expo is a division of Collectors Universe, Inc.
For more information about the show, contact Expos Unlimited, 8 West Figueroa, Santa Barbara, CA 93101l; telephone (805) 962-9939.
