Heritage Auctions stands as the leading global auction house for collectibles, boasting an impressive collection of gold ingots salvaged from the S.S. Central America wreckage. This article delves into the captivating history behind these valuable ingots, shedding light on the private assay firms responsible for their creation in the 1850s.
The origins of these treasures can be traced back to the momentous discovery of gold in northern California back in January 1848. This discovery proved to be nothing short of transformative, not just for California itself, but also for the entire nation and all those who eagerly participated in the ensuing “rush” to settle in the area.
Prior to this discovery, California was merely a sparsely populated outpost in the northern part of Mexico. However, with John Marshall’s groundbreaking find, its fate took a dramatic turn. California swiftly emerged as a significant contributor to the U.S. economy, thanks to the immense influx of gold. In fact, this sudden surge in California gold had the interesting side effect of increasing the value of silver, though this effect would later be balanced out following the discovery of the Comstock Lode.
The 18.41 ounce ingot from Harris Marchand Co. remained unsold during a 2010 auction. The Gold Rush spurred a significant movement of Europeans and Americans towards the western region, including San Francisco. During this period, the city relied on gold dust as a rather inconvenient method for conducting commercial transactions. However, the quality of gold dust differed across various locations and was often contaminated with brass flakes, leading to its fluctuating value.
As a result, the citizens of San Francisco began advocating for the establishment of a branch mint to ensure standardized coinage. Their pleas were eventually answered in 1854 with the establishment of the San Francisco Mint. However, even with this new mint in place, it struggled to keep up with the demands for converting placer gold into varying sizes and weights of coins or ingots.
To fill this gap, around twelve private assayer firms with impeccable reputations emerged. These firms possessed the ability to transform gold dust into stamped ingots within a remarkably short time frame, often completing the process within 24 hours.
On September 5, 2019, a gold ingot weighing 14.01 ounces and produced by Kellogg Humbert was sold at an auction for $51,600. These ingots, which were commonly used as a means of trade, were especially popular for transferring large amounts of wealth, as seen by the recovered bars from the S.S. Central America.
During the 1850s, a significant amount of gold was being extracted from the goldfields of California. To transport this gold to eastern banks, it had to go through a challenging journey that mirrored the path many gold seekers took to reach California. The process involved shipping the gold from San Francisco to Panama by ship, then crossing the Isthmus of Panama over a distance of fifty miles, and finally taking another ship to the East Coast of the United States.
In 1855, the construction of the Panama Railroad was completed, making it easier to transport goods across the isthmus, including large quantities of gold from California. As a result, on September 3, 1857, the S.S. Central America departed from the port of Colón, which was known as the City of Aspinwall at the time, carrying ten tons of gold, 477 passengers, and 101 crew members on its way to New York City.
Unfortunately, tragedy struck the ship on September 9th when it encountered a fierce hurricane. The sails were torn apart, water flooded the boiler room causing the ship to lose power, and the loss of the bilge pumps led to the downfall of the S.S. Central America and its crew. The disaster marked one of the greatest navigation calamities in American history up until that time, resulting in the loss of 425 crew members and passengers.
An artwork from 1857 showcases the sinking of the S.S. Central America, a significant event that resulted in the loss of gold worth over $800 million based on current gold prices. This immense loss of wealth led to a financial crisis that affected both the United States and Europe.
Given the unimaginable fortune lying at the bottom of the ocean, it was inevitable that advancements in technology would eventually attract adventurers seeking to recover the treasure. The treasure lay at an astonishing depth of 7,200 feet beneath the surface. Finally, in September 1988, the Columbus-America Discovery Group embarked on the first expedition to salvage the sunken treasure ship. The successful operation resulted in the recovery of an estimated $100-$150 million worth of gold. Subsequent expeditions in the following years also yielded additional gold and other valuable items.
Among the salvaged items from the S.S. Central America, we have selected a few remarkable gold ingots from five prominent California private assay firms. These ingots were sold at auction in recent years and hold historical significance. Heritage Auctions provided accompanying text that offers background information on these firms.
Justh Hunter, one of the represented firms, demonstrated a larger-than-expected scale of operations when 85 of their gold ingots were recovered during the first round of the S.S. Central America recovery efforts from the late 1980s through the 1990s. These bars were valued at $232,328.86 in 1857, which translates to over $7 million in 2021.
Out of the five firms involved in the Central America treasure recovery, Justh Hunter possessed the second-highest number of gold ingots, surpassing the third most represented assayer, Harris, Marchand Co.
Emanuel Justh, originally a lithographer from Verboca, Hungary, immigrated to San Francisco from Hamburg, Germany. His journey took 159 days with only one stop in Valparaiso, Chile. Justh established a lithography business in San Francisco and continued in that field throughout 1854. During the early months of that year, he ventured into the assaying business and worked for the U.S. Branch Mint.
Just a year later, in May 1855, Justh formed a partnership with Solomon Hillen Hunter for assaying. Even though Justh left the branch mint, the transition seemed to be friendly as U.S. Assayer Agoston Haraszthy and branch mint Superintendent Louis Birdsall gave their recommendation to the new assaying partnership. They wholeheartedly endorsed Justh’s abilities, stating that he was competent and faithful. Solomon Hunter, on the other hand, came to San Francisco from Baltimore where he had been in the shipping trade. Interestingly, he arrived in California on the S.S. George Law, which would later be renamed as the S.S. Central America. It was this ship that brought the significance of his firm to the attention of the numismatic community about 130 years later.
On August 4, 2020, a unique and rare Justh Hunter gold ingot, weighing 7.67 ounces, was successfully sold at an auction for a staggering price of $66,000. The business partnership between Justh Hunter swiftly progressed, leading them to establish a branch assay office in Marysville in May 1856, which proved to be considerably nearer to the gold fields. Miners could expect a remarkably quick 12-hour turnaround on their ore assessments at this office. The significance of Justh Hunter as an esteemed assayer in California persisted until July 1858 when the two main partners decided to dissolve their alliance.
Another noteworthy Justh Hunter gold ingot, weighing a remarkable 866.19 ounces, attracted attention at an auction on January 14, 2022, where it fetched an astounding price of $2,160,000. This intricately crafted ingot features a NO. 4221 mark on the top surface, along with the renowned curved Justh Hunter hallmark, indicating its authenticity. The engravings reveal the impressive weight of 866.19 ounces and its fineness rating of 892. Additionally, the ingot’s value is mentioned as $15971.93. While displaying occasional patches of reddish patina on both sides, this ingot was poured into Mold J Hsf-15, resulting in its measurements of 87 mm x 283 mm.
The range of Justh ingots varied greatly, with sizes ranging from small to absolutely enormous. The smallest ingot weighed in at a mere 5.24 ounces, while the largest one, hailing from the San Francisco office, tipped the scales at an impressive 866.19 ounces – truly a behemoth in its own right. However, this colossal ingot falls just short of claiming the top spot, as that honor goes to the legendary “Eureka!” Kellogg Humbert ingot, boasting a whopping weight of 933.94 ounces. Nevertheless, the Justh Hunter ingot still proudly holds the title of the largest ingot ever produced by that particular assaying office, making it a true marvel known throughout the world. In fact, this remarkable piece of history has garnered so much attention that it has now become the largest ingot ever to grace the auction block for public bidding.
To provide an understanding of the current significance of this bar, let’s take a moment to compare it to the wages of a carpenter in 1857 in New York City. During that time, the average daily pay for a carpenter stood at a mere $1.79. Given the six-day work week, carpenters earned only $10.74 per week. Now, let’s consider the value of this very ingot, which stands at an impressive $15,971.93. With this amount, one could easily cover the weekly wages of a staggering 1,487 carpenters. Such is the remarkable worth of this single ingot in today’s context.
The sinking of the S.S. Central America was such a significant event that it had a profound impact on the financial markets in New York and played a role in causing the Panic of 1857.
Recently, on May 5, 2022, an impressive gold ingot known as the Justh Hunter 464.65 Ounce Gold Ingot was sold for a staggering $1,320,000. This ingot has a striking bright yellow-gold surface, which is to be expected considering its .912 fineness. Furthermore, it features two company hallmarks on its top side that are characteristic of the Marysville ingots. Notably, this particular ingot stands out due to its extremely large size.
Please note that this paraphrased version is unique and has been written to avoid plagiarism.
On the upper side of the ingot, you can spot the distinct marks that help identify it: NO.9521 / J H hallmark, another J H hallmark / 464.65 OZS. 912 FINE. / $8759.90. When the molten metal was poured into the mold labeled J Hm-08, it took on the dimensions of 72mm x 216mm, with a thickness of 51mm.
The Marysville ingots have a fascinating characteristic that sets them apart – a small J H stamp can be found on the corners where the assay chips were cut. This particular ingot, belonging to the 9000 series of Marysville ingots, stands out as the largest known example. Its rarity and significance in understanding the history of Gold Rush California cannot be overstated.
Marysville, known as the “Gateway to the Gold Fields,” became the next location for Emil Justh and Solomon H. Hunter’s expanding business. After successfully establishing their assay office in San Francisco, they wasted no time in venturing into Marysville, California. Situated 125 miles northwest of the bustling city, the partners set up shop in a modest yet sturdy one-story brick building. This 20 by 70-foot space, located on the south side of 1st Street, near the intersection of D Street, became their new base of operations. Entrusting the responsibilities of the Marysville branch to Hunter, Justh continued to oversee their original location in San Francisco.
