The Traveller Collection: A Hidden Legacy Set to Rewrite Numismatic History
Known as The Traveller Collection, this extraordinary hoard is poised to transform the narrative of historical coin collecting.
The story begins in the aftermath of the 1929 Wall Street Crash. A European collector and his wife embarked on a decades-long journey across Europe and the Americas with a singular mission: to gather the rarest and most historically significant coins in existence. Each piece was meticulously documented, building a careful record of provenance.
But as World War II loomed and Nazi forces advanced, the collector made a bold decision. Rather than risk losing his life’s work, he buried the collection. Packed in cigar boxes and aluminum canisters, the entire treasure was sealed underground—and its guardian vanished into history.
The $160 Million Collection Emerges from the Shadows
More than 50 years later, the collector’s descendants have recovered the treasure and brought it to light. The renowned auction house Numismatica Ars Classica (NAC) is preparing to unveil it, with the first auction slated for May 20, 2025. According to NAC director Arturo Russo, this is “the most valuable numismatic collection ever brought to auction in its entirety.”
The auction is expected to be a landmark event in high-end coin collecting. Many of the coins are so rare they haven’t been seen in over 80 years—some were never even officially recorded in numismatic archives.
Crown Jewels of Coinage: Gold Giants of Europe’s Royal Dynasties
Among the standout pieces is the legendary 100-ducat gold coin of Ferdinand III of Habsburg (1629). Weighing a staggering 348.5 grams of pure gold, it's one of the largest gold coins ever minted in Europe and is valued at approximately $1.35 million USD.
Another gem is the 70-ducat coin of Polish King Sigismund III (1621), weighing 243 grams and estimated at $471,700 USD.
These are not mere collector’s items—they are tangible monuments to history, encapsulating the legacies of royal dynasties and geopolitical upheavals in solid gold.
2025 Auction to Showcase Coins Never Before Seen in Recorded History
The first sale in May 2025 will focus on British milled coinage, spanning monarchs from Charles II to George VI. The initial wave will be on public display throughout April at NAC’s London headquarters.
This is the beginning of a three-year series of auctions, with each phase revealing new layers of this once-buried legacy. With over 100 regions represented and a collection so well-preserved, it’s expected to draw intense global interest from historians and elite collectors alike.
A Living Time Capsule
More than a treasure trove, The Traveller Collection is a historical time capsule. It reflects not only one man’s passionate pursuit but also the turbulent eras it survived—the Great Depression, World War II, and the long silence that followed.
Each coin tells a story of personal obsession, historical resilience, and the mysterious journeys that treasures sometimes take—vanishing into legend only to return decades later.
Now, as the collection heads to auction, it transforms from a buried myth into a living legacy—reviving coins that once held empires together and reminding the world of the power of history, preserved in gold.
