Thursday, 7th February 2008 (2167 views)

American authorities have reportedly sold 743 gold coins that they seized at a port in Savannah, Georgia, after being found sealed inside a tractor tyre.

The coins, which include 361 US Gold Eagles, 380 Krugerrands from South Africa and two Australian Gold Nuggets, fetched a total price of $575,000 (£296,078), the Associated Press reports.

They were seized in September after being illegally brought in to the United States, hidden in high-pressure tubing inside a tractor tyre. They were discovered by a sniffer dog that was searching a cargo container from the Dominican Republic.

It is currently unclear, the site says, if investigators know who owned the coins, where they were going or what they were being used for.

American Gold Eagles, which were first minted in 1986, are an official bullion coin of the US. They feature a design of Lady Liberty by Irish-born sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens.

Gold Nuggets were also first minted in 1986, by the government of Western Australia. The one-ounce coin contains 99.99 per cent pure gold.

The South African Krugerrand was introduced in 1967. It contains contain exactly one troy ounce of 22ct gold and 54.5 million of them have been sold to date.

 

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