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10 more 1933 double eagles are held in Fort Knox
In This Case, All That Glitters Is Gold. Just Don't Call Them Coins.
Sign In to E-Mail This Printer-Friendly Reprints By GLENN COLLINS Published: August 12, 2005 The United States Mint announced yesterday that it had recovered 10 more of its fabled 1933 double eagle $20 gold pieces and stored them in Fort Knox. But the family that sought to authenticate them at the Mint claims that the government had no right to take them. Beth Deisher, the editor of Coin World, said that "it has been rumored for years that more of these coins were being held by private citizens." The Mint's announcement on its Web site caused a sensation in coin circles yesterday. A 1933 double eagle that surfaced in 1996 is on exhibition at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, at 33 Liberty Street in Manhattan. The Treasury declared it a coin as part of a legal settlement, and in 2002 it was sold at Sotheby's for $7.59 million - the most ever publicly paid for a coin. The anonymous buyer has lent it for display. "We are pleased that these 10 double eagles have been recovered," David Lebryk, the Mint's acting director, said in the statement. "These Double Eagles were never lawfully issued, but instead, were taken from the United States Mint at Philadelphia in an unlawful manner more than 70 years ago. They are, and always have been, public property belonging to the United States." The Mint said that the Treasury would not declare them legal coins, or auction them. They came to light last September when, the Mint said, the government was approached by a lawyer for the family of a Philadelphia jeweler. The lawyer, Barry H. Berke of Manhattan, said the gold pieces were "voluntarily" revealed to the government by Joan Langbord, the daughter of the jeweler, Israel Switt, who died in the early 1980's. He added: "The Mint has responded to their good-faith efforts to amicably resolve any issues relating to their coins by seeking to keep the coins. The Langbord family fully expects that their coins will be returned to them so they can be freely traded like every other numismatic treasure with a colorful history. I expect that if they are not returned there will be litigation." When the United States came off the gold standard in 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered the destruction of all but two of the pieces - called double eagles because they were twice the value of a $10 eagle gold piece. But some left the Mint under murky circumstances that are still debated; any that have turned up have been claimed by the Secret Service. Mr. Berke said that the government had never established that the pieces were stolen. In 2002, "the Mint guaranteed that no other double eagles would be monetized, and that none other could be sold," said Ute Wartenberg Kagan, executive director of the American Numismatic Society, so this discovery would not lower the value of the Sotheby's coin. "This notoriety might tend to increase the value of the coin," said David Tripp, the author of "Illegal Tender: Gold, Greed and the Mystery of the Lost 1933 Double Eagle." Of the possibility of a lawsuit, Dr. Wartenberg Kagan said: "The family has to come up with an argument about why United States law doesn't apply in this case, since the government holds that these coins cannot be legally owned." Next Article in New York Region (11 of 22) For a limited time, get The Times delivered free for 2 weeks. |
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When I was 16 I got "busted" for having fireworks. Police asked me to
bring them all downstairs. I only brought about 1/2 of them down (couldn't carry all of them in one trip). They were happy with what I brought them and left, not giving me enough time to get the remainder. Wonder if these folks only turned in 1/2 of what they had, just to see what happens. |
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Yes indeedy, now I see what's happening - the family wants to get their
pieces "monetized" and sold on a fifty-fifty deal like the Fenton piece. IMHO, litigate a little bit, and that's actually likely to be the outcome. They won't see $75 million for the lot, but they will probably do well. oly |
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Jud wrote:
When I was 16 I got "busted" for having fireworks. Police asked me to bring them all downstairs. I only brought about 1/2 of them down (couldn't carry all of them in one trip). They were happy with what I brought them and left, not giving me enough time to get the remainder. Wonder if these folks only turned in 1/2 of what they had, just to see what happens. Taking 1933 Double Gold Eagles to the Mint for authentication reminds me of the incident in NYC. Two teenaged hookers went to the police seeking an arrest warrant for a john who had paid them with a bad check.... Alan 'some are unclear on the concept' |
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On Fri, 12 Aug 2005 07:19:05 -0400, Alan Williams
wrote: Jud wrote: When I was 16 I got "busted" for having fireworks. Police asked me to bring them all downstairs. I only brought about 1/2 of them down (couldn't carry all of them in one trip). They were happy with what I brought them and left, not giving me enough time to get the remainder. Wonder if these folks only turned in 1/2 of what they had, just to see what happens. Taking 1933 Double Gold Eagles to the Mint for authentication reminds me of the incident in NYC. Two teenaged hookers went to the police seeking an arrest warrant for a john who had paid them with a bad check.... In Germany and Switzerland, paying with a bad check is definitely not a good idea. They would arrest the johns. Falls under the heading of "fraudulent use of services" or something similar (it's called "Erschleichung einer Dienstleistung" in German). Prostitution is legal, but highly regulated, in many European countries. I believe it is also legal in the state of Nevada (?). Streetwalking, however, is usually illegal. (Disclaimer: IANAL, and I have absolutely no first-hand knowledge of any of the above!) -- Bob Hairgrove |
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They shudda tried with just one piece, to see what would happen, and if
they got lucky and established a precedent then revealed the others. Of course, if the idiot lawyer had read the book "Illegal Tender," which mentions the (now-former) owner of the coins by name, he would have known what a vendetta the Treasury Dept. has had against these coins, and quietly moved them to a Swiss bank. Maybe she can sue the lawyer for criminal stupidity. TD |
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On Fri, 12 Aug 2005 13:54:46 +0200, Bob Hairgrove
wrote: On Fri, 12 Aug 2005 07:19:05 -0400, Alan Williams wrote: Taking 1933 Double Gold Eagles to the Mint for authentication reminds me of the incident in NYC. Two teenaged hookers went to the police seeking an arrest warrant for a john who had paid them with a bad check.... In Germany and Switzerland, paying with a bad check is definitely not a good idea. They would arrest the johns. Falls under the heading of "fraudulent use of services" or something similar (it's called "Erschleichung einer Dienstleistung" in German). Prostitution is legal, but highly regulated, in many European countries. I believe it is also legal in the state of Nevada (?). Streetwalking, however, is usually illegal. (Disclaimer: IANAL, and I have absolutely no first-hand knowledge of any of the above!) If I understand the difference (and IANAL as well), in the US if you have a contract (even a verbal one) for something illegal, you don't have the option of using the legal system to enforce the contract. The situation with Nevada is that it's not allowed in Clark or Washoe Counties (Vegas and Reno), and it's also illegal in Carson City and Tahoe. The remaining counties have the option of making it legal. Even then, it's legal only for licensed establishments. Believe it or not, I had to learn this for a former job. take care, Scott |
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Gee! When I was a kid, we were setting off fireworks one day when a police
motorcycle came tearing down the street, siren blazing and red lights flashing. We all scattered to the four winds. The motorcycle cop pulled into our driveway and when he got off we noticed that it was our uncle. He asked for our father and when my father came out, my uncle opened the back of the three wheel motorcycle and took out a bag. He gave it to my father and said that he had just taken these fireworks from some kids. Then he said, "Don't let the cops catch you with them." And away he went. True story. "Jud" wrote in message oups.com... When I was 16 I got "busted" for having fireworks. Police asked me to bring them all downstairs. I only brought about 1/2 of them down (couldn't carry all of them in one trip). They were happy with what I brought them and left, not giving me enough time to get the remainder. Wonder if these folks only turned in 1/2 of what they had, just to see what happens. |
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On Fri, 12 Aug 2005 19:34:57 +0200, Bob Hairgrove
wrote: On Fri, 12 Aug 2005 15:16:57 GMT, (Scott Stevenson) wrote: Believe it or not, I had to learn this for a former job. I guess it would be easier to decide whether to believe it or not if we knew what kind of job it was. I worked for a company that made software that city and county governments use to track things like building permits, business licenses, etc. We had several clients in Nevada, and one of them had a license type for "adult entertainment". take care, Scott the inspectors said its not nearly as glamorous as it sounds... |
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