Coins from the Hackney Hoard pic: Portable Antiquities Scheme

An antique American gold coin uncovered in a back garden in Hackney in 2007 will go on display at the Hackney Museum on Tuesday 29 November.

First minted in 1854, the $20 Double Eagle, was donated to the borough by Max Sulzbacher in April this year. Max is the son Martin Sulzbacher, the original owner of the hoard, which contains 82 rare gold coins in total. The coins are thought to have been buried in the 1940s, and their discovery captured much public attention as the British Museum attempt to find out the origins of the ‘treasure’.

To read our full report on the history of the coins, click here.

Another 77 coins from the discovery will be auctioned at Sotheby’s later this month, and are expected to sell for up to £80,000.

Martin Sulzbacher, who originally owned the coins, moved to Hackney from Germany with his extended family in the late 1930s, but later moved to Australia alone. His extended family remained in London and buried the coins in their garden for safekeeping. However, their Hackney home was bombed in the blitz and members of his family were killed.

Max Sulzbacher, 81, said: “I am very grateful to the finders for reporting the coins to the Portable Antiquities Scheme and the Museum of London, and to the member of the public who alerted the coroner to the 1950s discovery.”

“The money from the auction is being used to refurbish and re-bless the graves of my family members killed by the bomb, a fitting conclusion to this part of my family’s history”, he added.