An 8.2-pound chunk of gold was auctioned Wednesday in California for $460,000, the equivalent of $3,500 per ounce, or slightly more than 2.5-times the current value of gold, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
The so-called Washington nugget was found last year in Nevada County, California near the historic gold mining town of Washington. The seller, whom the auctioneer described as "very pleased," is seriously considering a sale of his 180- acre property, which is believed to hold more than 4,000 additional ounces of gold. That seller, and the buyer, both remain anonymous.
Just prior to 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, gold futures were exactly $1,400 per troy ounce after climbing 0.28 percent, which was an increase of $3.90. Thus, the straight value of the 8.2 pound nugget was $183,680.
Wednesday also saw the auction of two additional nuggets the seller found. One weighing four ounces sold for $7,700 and one weighing 10 ounces sold for $17,000.
In March 2010, the property owner unearthed the nugget with assistance from a metal detector, which was unavailable to the so-called Forty-Niners who prospected the hills and streams near Washington more than 150 years ago.
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