PR: Treasure at Long Beach
Nospamdonn
at Long Beach Expo
(Long Beach, CA) – The world’s first public exhibit of previously
unseen California Gold Rush treasures from the famous S.S. Central America
shipwreck will be displayed at the Long Beach Coin & Collectibles Expo,
Thursday - Sunday, February 10 - 13, 2000. The $10 million exhibit of
recovered coins and ingots will be housed in a specially-built, 30-foot long
replica of the ship’s hull.
The Central America display will include the world’s largest gold bar, a
brick weighing nearly 80 pounds (933 ounces), produced in 1857 by historic
assayers Kellogg & Humbert of San Francisco. It was among the tons of gold
cargo on board when the Central America sank in a hurricane in September 1857
on a journey from Panama to New York City.
"I grew up in California and have studied the history and money of the San
Francisco Mint and the Old West all my life. I’ve never seen anything in
numismatics as amazing and mind-boggling as the coins and ingots recovered from
the Central America," said Ronald J. Gillio, Expo General Chairman. "As
dazzling as photographs of these coins may appear, they are even more
spectacular and beautiful in person. It is absolutely thrilling for a
collector to see them firsthand."
The exhibit is being mounted by the California Gold Group of Newport
Beach, the organization that purchased intact the fabled treasure. Expo
visitors will peer through "portholes" in the replica of the ship to see
samples of the 1850s gold coins and assayer’s bars from the $100+ million
cargo.
"This is big, really big," said Gillio. "It’s the ship of gold."
The exhibit will be located near the main entrance to the Expo bourse in
the Long Beach, California Convention Center, 100 S. Pine Ave. Show hours are
Thursday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Bob Evans, director of science and history of the Columbus-America
Discovery Group, the organization that located and recovered the treasure, will
present two lectures about "Secrets of the S.S. Central America," at 4:00 p.m.
Friday, February 11, and at 1:00 p.m. Saturday, February 12.
The Expo will also host the first display outside Las Vegas of the 100
Series 1934 Federal Reserve Note $10,000 bank notes that previously were a
tourist attraction at Binion’s Hotel & Casino. The notes were purchased by
Kansas City dealer Jay Parrino who estimates their collector value at more than
$10 million.
More than two dozen collectors’ club meetings and educational seminars
will be held during the Long Beach Coin & Collectibles Expo. Online hobby
activities for collectors and dealers will be discussed by representatives of
eBay and Tias.com. Collectors Universe Professional Coin Grading Service
(PCGS) and Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC) also will conduct educational
forums.
Rare coin and paper money auctions will be conducted by Heritage
Numismatic Auctions of Dallas, Texas and Ponterio & Associates of San Diego,
California.
The show is hosted by the Long Beach Coin Club and Long Beach Stamp Club.
Corporate sponsor participants include PCGS; NGC; eBay; Heritage Numismatic
Auctions; and UBS Numismatics/Art Banking; the Austrian Mint; and the World
Money Fair of Basel.
Admission is $4 (for a four- day pass), but free to anyone with a valid
membership card from any coin or stamp club.
For additional information, contact the Expo office (before February 4) at
(805) 962-9939 or (February 9 - 13) at the Long Beach Convention Center, (562)
436-3636. Or visit the Expo’s web site at www.longbeachshow.com.
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