It’s the stuff Indiana Jones movies are made of. A rare and intriguing trove of South African gold coins, now referred to as ‘the lost hoard’, have been discovered in a Swiss vault and are currently in the possession of the South African Mint. While it is true that gold was evacuated from Pretoria by the then Transvaal Government during the Second Anglo-Boer War (1899–1902), no accurate account has ever been produced of its fate, spawning an urban legend of the ‘Kruger Millions’.
- The appeal of this missing gold makes the recent discovery of a large parcel of the gold Kruger ponde a significant find.
- Named ‘the lost hoard’ by the numismatic community, the Kruger ponde were stored in the Netherlands during the early 20th century.
- The parcel was then transferred to Switzerland before the Second World War (1939–1945) for safekeeping and remained in a Swiss vault for decades, until it was recently sold at an auction.
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The discovery of the Lost Hoard is truly awe-inspiring, and it is with great pride that we offer the coin sets to the numismatic fraternity. The sets are the closest, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to physically own authentic remnants of the Transvaal gold.
// Managing Director of the South African Mint, Honey Mamabolo
The authenticity of the lost hoard find has been independently verified and graded by the Numismatic Guarantee Corporation in Florida, in the United States. Each coin has been individually graded, certified and slabbed. The certification confirms the authenticity, legal tender status (1893–1900) as well as the correct weight of each individual coin.
The South African Mint has made these unique coins, available in two sets for purchase, along with a 2019 limited-edition privy-mark Krugerrand. The first set is made up of an 1893–1900 Lost Hoard Kruger half-pond with a 2019 1/10 oz gold privy-mark proof Krugerrand. The second set consists of an 1893–1900 Lost Hoard Kruger full pond and a 2019 ¼ oz gold privy-mark proof Krugerrand. The sets have limited editions of 233 and 677 units respectively.
The packaging features, among other things, a replica of the original money bag in which the coins remained hidden for more than a century.
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