Two-pound gold ingot tops final SS Central America sale at Holabird

32.15-ounce Kellogg & Humbert assayer’s California Gold Rush gold ingot, recovered from the 1857 sinking of the S.S. Central America, $138,000. Image courtesy of Holabird Western Americana Collections
RENO, Nev. – From lumps of coal and crewmembers’ keys to tableware and exquisite jewelry, collectors bid $1.1 million to acquire 422 lots of California Gold Rush-era artifacts recovered from the 1857 sinking of the fabled “Ship of Gold,” the S.S. Central America. The two-day auction took place March 4 and 5, and was conducted in Reno, Nevada and online by Holabird Western Americana Collections.