black opal and other finds that instantly turned ordinary people into millionaires

Everyone at least once in his life dreamed of hitting the jackpot. In this case, it does not matter at all what you do in this case. You can buy lottery tickets, you can comb fields with a metal detector, dive to the bottom of the ocean in search of sunken treasures…

Everyone is hoping for a big jackpot, become a rich man and no longer worry about their daily bread. For most of these dreamers, wealth remains an elusive chimera. But there were incredible lucky people in the history of mankind who accidentally made an amazing discovery that allowed them to wake up as millionaires in the morning.

10 finds that instantly turned ordinary people into millionaires

Gold nugget

Gold nugget
Gold nugget

In the fall of 1980, Kevin Hillier and his family traveled along the coast of Australia. They could barely make ends meet. The head of the family injured his back, and doctors forbade him to work. There was no money for proper treatment and rest. Hillier was interrupted by odd jobs for some time. Once, he decided to try his luck in search of treasures with the help of a metal detector. He and his wife loaded some simple belongings into their old van and set off on a trip around the country.

Kevin’s wife constantly cried out to God in prayer to help her husband realize himself through this new hobby. But no one even dreamed about what happened soon. One day Hillier had a strange dream. He dreamed that he had found such a huge gold nugget that he could not pick it up. Even after that, Kevin didn’t really count on anything. He did not even admit the thought that the day was not far off when this pipe dream would come true.

One September day, Hillier walked around the field with a metal detector as usual. Unexpectedly for himself, he stumbled upon a gold nugget. It took him several hours to extract this giant piece of gold from the earth. It was really quite difficult to lift it, because the weight was almost 28 kilograms! Nugget Kevin sold the Gold Nugget Casino in Las Vegas for over $1 million. It is one of the largest gold nuggets in the world.

Magnolias on gold velvet

Magnolias on gold velvet
Magnolias on gold velvet

One man bought a painting at a cheap flea market to fill a hole in the wall of his house. Once he played the board game “Masterpiece” and there, one picture was very much similar to the one that hung on his wall. The man was intrigued and began to search for information on the Internet. On the Kennedy Gallery website, he found information about the canvas. Its author was the famous American artist Martin Johnson Heade.

The man contacted the gallery experts and sent them several photographs of his painting. The result amazed him. The painting he used to cover the hole in the wall turned out to be a lost work by Heade, a fabulous price. The accidental acquisition was in excellent condition, even in its original frame. All this is despite the canvas being painted at the end of the 19th century. It was called Magnolias on Gold Velvet. The Museum of Fine Arts of Houston acquired the painting for $1.25 million.

The first copy of the Declaration of Independence

The first copy of the Declaration of Independence
The first copy of the Declaration of Independence. ©Gettyimages

Most Americans consider the Declaration of Independence to be the most important document in the country’s history. After the original document was created, John Dunlap made 200 copies of the “first edition” for distribution throughout the States. To date, less than three dozen surviving copies are known. Three of them are kept in private collections. One of these valuable copies was discovered by accident.

One man bought a painting from a thrift store simply because he was extremely fond of its beautiful frame. When he took it apart, he found a folded document in very good condition behind the linen. The lucky one immediately contacted representatives of Sotheby’s. Experts assessed the document, and it was sold for $ 2.42 million in space.

Hoxne Hoard

Hoxne Hoard
Hoxne Hoard

In the fall of 1992, a typical British farmer labored in a field in Suffolk. At some point in time, he lost his hammer without noticing it. When the farmer grabbed the tool, he realized that he would never find a hammer alone. It’s like looking for a needle in a haystack. The man came up with a brilliant idea – to ask his friend with a metal detector to help him in this matter. Soon the device beeped, and the farmer happily began to dig in the indicated place. To his surprise, the man pulled out from the soil, not his lost instrument at all, but something much more exciting.

A whole scattering of ancient gold and silver coins opened to the eyes of the amazed farmer. The farmer has informed the local police and archaeologists. Experts during excavations at the site have found about 27 kilograms of precious items. Among them are more than 15,000 coins from the times of the domination of the Roman Empire. A poor farmer named Eric Lowes woke up rich and famous. He received over $ 2.5 million in rewards from the UK government for his stunning find. Erik handed half of it to his friend, who did find his hammer.

Royal black opal

Royal black opal
Royal black opal

A certain man named Bobby has been mining opals for more than two decades. He could not boast of particularly large earnings, and the work was very hard. At some point, the tired miner decided to give up everything. Bobby put his work equipment up for sale. What happened to him next looks like a fairy tale. On his last shift, in the last bucket of rock, he found a beautiful stone.

Bobby named it Royal. He was well aware of the value of the discovered treasure. Despite this, he hid it from everyone for a decade and a half. The man wore it in a canvas bag around his neck, and hid it under the bed at night. In the end, he made the decision to sell his charm. The magnificent opal brought the miner 3 million greens.

Tanzanite stones

Tanzanite stones

Tanzanite is an incredibly rare mineral that can only be found in one place on earth, in the African country of Tanzania. That is why it got its name. The uniqueness and rarity of this gem make it highly valuable. Mineral mining is popular with treasure hunters and aspiring entrepreneurs. Among the host of adventurers, Saniniu Lizer is undoubtedly the most fortunate.

In the summer of 2020, his Tanzanian mining company discovered two of the largest stones in history. One weighed almost 10 kilograms, and the other a little over 5. Lizer sold the treasure for almost 3.5 million dollars. After that, to the surprise of many, he did not complete his career, but continued to search for stones. Luck smiled at him once more. Saniniu found another one weighing more than 5 kilograms and earned another 2 million. Father Lizer, with many children, was very helpful. He has three dozen children who need care. The entrepreneur also donates generously to charity. In his area, which is very poor, he is building a medical center and a school.

Roman helmet Crosby Garrett

Roman helmet Crosby Garrett
Roman helmet Crosby Garrett

In the UK, all treasures must be reported immediately to the authorities. Valuable archaeological artifacts are not subject to free sale. The finder is usually paid a reward, and the finds are bought by local museums. There they are put on public display. The law applies to items made of gold and silver.

The unique find of one amateur metal detector did not fall under this law, because it was made of bronze. The artifact was a Roman cavalry helmet. For its age, it was just in excellent condition. This helmet is one of three found in the UK with a full face mask. The rare artifact was auctioned for $3.6 million.

Staffordshire treasure

Staffordshire treasure
Staffordshire treasure

Another amateur metal detector wandered through the English fields in Lichfield. Suddenly the device squeaked very loudly. Terry immediately realized that he had stumbled upon something special. When he dug up the ground, he discovered a fabulous treasure. Gold coins, weapons, jewelry that have lain in the earth for over 1300 years. The treasure was named “Staffordshire Treasure”.

It is a cache of a turbulent page in English history. It belonged to the powerful kingdom of Mercia. Experts believe that these treasures were obtained in the battles with Northumbria and East Anglia. It is unclear how the treasure was buried away from any buildings or roads. The secret of this will probably never be revealed.

The treasure was acquired by the Birmingham Museum for more than $ 4.3 million. There they are displayed to this day. The award was split in half by metal detector Terry Herbert and landowner Fred Johnson.

Christ mocked

Christ mocked
Christ mocked

This story is remarkably similar to that of Magnolias on Gold Velvet. For several decades, the precious canvas hung in the kitchen in the home of French farmers. The owners considered the painting to be a Russian icon. From the heat of the oven, the paints darkened, the surface was covered with a disgusting layer of grease and dirt. The picture was discovered by an expert assessing the property of an old woman who was preparing to move to a nursing home.

After careful examination and after a minor cleaning, it turned out that this is one of only 11 famous paintings by the great Italian artist, Cimabue. The canvas was put up for sale. It was acquired by American collectors who specialize in Italian Renaissance art for nearly $ 27 million. France has imposed a two-and-a-half-year ban on the export of the painting. The authorities hope that they will be able to raise funds during this time in order to redeem the masterpiece and exhibit it in the Louvre.

The third Imperial Faberge Easter egg

The third Imperial Faberge Easter egg
The third Imperial Faberge Easter egg

When the Russian Empire was shaken by the storm of the Great October Revolution, the royal family was shot, and all their property was plundered. Numerous luxury items, jewelry, including the unique Faberge eggs, have been lost. The lavishly decorated Easter eggs by Carl Faberge are incredibly valuable. This is because they are created from precious metals and stones and because they are rare relics of the Romanov dynasty. These relics are incredibly famous and easy to identify. Only now they are found all over the world in private collections, and almost nothing is known about them.

One day, a man stumbled upon one of these unique pieces of art during a sale. He did not know what it was and did not imagine its true value. The man bought it out of a desire to disassemble, melt and sell it piece by piece. The man bought the egg for $ 14,000 and decided to make a preliminary expert assessment. He was very worried that he had thrown money down the drain. After he found out what it really is, he was incredibly amazed. He didn’t just lose anything. After the sale of the egg, the scrap gold merchant became richer by 33 million greens.

Ancient treasures always intrigue the imagination. In addition, they can reveal interesting details from the distant past.

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