Shipwreck silver! 3 5g silver Johnson Matthey bars
Silver55
Posts: 4 ✭
Hello all, new to the forums. Quick story, went to a local coin shop and asked to see their generic silver bin. I picked up 22 pieces of silver at $1.50 over spot, ( about $17.60 per ozt.) At the bottom of the bin I found these 3 5g bars. I love fractional silver so I picked them up not realizing their back story. It wasn't until I posted them on social media and received 4 cash offers and 3 trade offer in a little over 3 hours. I decided to look them up. So, what I gathered is in 1715 11 out of 12 Spanish ships carrying silver, sunk in a hurricane off the coast of Florida. In 1981 or 82 some of the dominance of the wreakage was found, including some silver. Johnson Matthey purchased some of the silver and produced 20,000 5g silver bars. I found #00078, #00079 and #00080. Is this story correct? Are there other variations of the story or parts I left out? Information was hard to find. Thank you! And Happy Fourth of July!!! 
Comments
Welcome to the forum. Do you have any pics of the reverse?
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
The reverse is blank, I believe. I'll try and get a pic.
Nice pick ups, especially low # and in sequence. This type in gold commands huge premium if you can locate one.
More info can be found here
http://allengelhard.com/the-collections/johnson-matthey/ag-odd-size/
Welcome to the boards, Silver55!
That is the same story I have heard. I would put FMV for those in the 3x-4x range of what you paid, and the low, sequential numbers are a definite plus for us stacker nerds (me included).
Well done. Welcome !
all around collector of many fine things
Thank you everyone for welcoming to the forums!
Welcome, nice bars. Good picking.
Wow, "sweet" !!!
From allenglehard:
(Fewer than 7,000 pieces minted)
5 gram example produced in 1980 by Johnson Matthey, United States. Minted from bullion containing authentic treasure silver recovered from the wreck site of a Spanish treasure fleet, lost on July 30, 1715. Original order form mentions silver pendant and gold variations available as well. While some sources report 20k mintage, All Engelhard has not observed a serial higher than 7k, nor a gold variation.
--Severian the Lame
Damn, nice find in a coin shop showcase, never mind in a bargain bin! Nice haul!!
MY GOLD TYPE SET https://pcgs.com/setregistry/type-sets/complete-type-sets/gold-type-set-12-piece-circulation-strikes-1839-1933/publishedset/321940
Very beautiful. Thanks for posting
these got hot about 3 years ago went for $100-$150 each. they have settled down to about $80-$100 ea but those low serials #'s may generate above avg interest.
Loves me some shiny!
Interesting story, but is all the silver in the bars from the shipwreck, or was a small quantity of silver from the shipwreck mixed into a much larger batch of modern silver?
I remember that some Apollo astronaut took some precious metal to the Moon with him (within his personal allowance) and afterwards the Franklin Mint mixed it into a large batch of the same precious metal and made souvenir medals "with metal that had been to the Moon" or suchlike.
Awesome find! I have one of those myself. But three with low serial number is way cool!
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Nice pickup!
You guys are awesome! Thank you!