Lot 1310
Historic Kellogg & Humbert Gold Ingot 21.31 oz bar from the S.S. Central America (1857). 866 Fine, $381.48 face. A lustrous, nearly perfect square compact "candy bar" size bar numbered on the face 878 with the Kellogg and Humbert stamp on the edge. Bias-cut assayer's "bites" in lower right edge on the front and on the upper right corner on the reverse along with the bar number of 878. Plated in Bowers A California Gold Rush History, featuring the treasure from the S.S. Central America, page 430, Mold KH-02.
Kellogg & Humbert were located at No. 108 Montgomery Street, San Francisco. An important and historical glimpse into the heyday of the California Gold Rush when bullion was being shipped about and fortunes were made overnight with the massive gold discoveries of that time. Here is a remendant that was lot in 1857, only to be found 135 years later. Estimate Value $60,000 - 70,000
On September 9th, 1857, while returning from Panama to New York City, the S.S. Central America ran into a hurricane. On the 11th, a major leak developed, and heroic efforts were made to bail out the water. On the 12th, all women and 28 or 29 children aboard were saved by a passing vessel, as were several dozen older men. Shortly after eight in the evening of the 12th, the Central America sank below the waves and was believed lost forever. Aboard was a vast store of gold being shipped from the San Francisco Mint to the New York Assay Office, plus coins and bullion carried for other accounts and many of the passengers, totaling $1,600,000 or more at a time when gold was valued at just $20.68 per ounce.
In the field of American gold coins, the S.S. Central America has yielded more numismatic treasure than all other sources. Moreover, no other known recovery has included even a single gold ingot of the California types found with the S.S. Central America treasure.
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| Realized $93,000 |
