Gold coins discovered by a couple in rural California Gold County, also known as the Saddle Ridge Hoard, and perceived by experts to be the largest buried treasure to be discovered in North America yet, were auctioned off Tuesday at the Old Mint in San Francisco.

Of the reported 1,427 gold coins, about 60 of them were exhibited at the Old Mint before being auctioned off.

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One of the more valuable pieces, a $20 Double Eagle from 1866 was appraised to be valued at more than $1 million.

Appraisers of the treasure trove had revealed that the coins are worth about $28,000. However, the final peg on its collective value was valued to be worth at least $10 million due to its rarity and well-preserved condition, with a third of the trove reportedly never having been circulated.

All the proceeds from the auction will be donated to the restoration and rehabilitation of the Old Mint building, where it will be converted into a museum.

According to Kagin, Inc., the coin dealer handling the sale, around 1,312 of the treasure trove were produced at the Old Mint. He said the couple had only felt it right that the proceeds from the sale of Double Eagle would go to the restoration of the facility where most of the coins were made.

The Saddle Ridge Hoard was discovered by a couple three months ago in Sierra Nevada. They were walking their dog in the rural property when they noticed a rusted metal can jutting out from the ground and decided to unearth it. After seeing what the canister contained, the couple decided to look for more coins, ending up with a total of 1,427 gold coins stored in 8 canisters.

They proceeded to have it authenticated and now, three months later, had sold about 60 coins in auction. The rest of the gold coins are reported to be sold privately to collectors, others are to be sold at Amazon, while a few coins will be kept by the couple as a memento of their find.

Tagstreasure trove, buried treasure, gold coins, kagins, coin collection, Sierra Nevada, double eagle