Gold surge helps to rake in $1.1M at Auction for RI’s Treasurer’s Office – Rhode Island Current

An auction of forgotten watches, rings, old coins, and other treasurers held earlier this month by the Rhode Island Office of the General Treasurer netted $1.1 million, money that will be kept in state coffers waiting for rightful owners of those items to claim.

The Nov. 8 sale at the Department of Administration building in Providence — the first unclaimed property auction held by the state in over a decade — drew hundreds of people interested in approximately 5,000 items being offered.

Most items came from bank safe deposit boxes that went on to be stored in the lost-and-found vault in the basement of the General Treasurer’s Warwick office.

The proceeds exceeded the state’s expectations: An appraisal estimated the value of all the items at $752,000, Grace Voll, a spokesperson for General Treasurer James Diossa, said in an email Tuesday

And it’s all thanks to the skyrocketing price of precious metals such as gold, which West Warwick auctioneer Jack Martone said made up the bulk items that were sold.

“When I started appraisals in July, gold was $3,100 an ounce, by auction it was $4,200,” Martone said in an interview.

The state has rules for how long a safe deposit box can be left unattended before it can be deemed dormant and its contents transferred to the general treasurer’s office.

Items sold at the auction were divided into 419 lots, ranging from historic banknotes, silverware, jewelry and even baseballs signed by New York Yankees legends Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle. That pair of baseballs fetched around $2,300, according to Diossa’s office.

The highest-selling item was an 18-karat solid gold paperweight, which Diossa’s office said sold for $20,000.

Diossa’s office hired Martone, 77, to handle the auction duties, along with weighing and testing the items that were sold, after issuing two requests for proposals. Martone submitted responses to both of the bid solicitations.

It’s the third time Martone has overseen a live unclaimed property auction for the state, which tends to happen once a decade. The November sale has easily cleared as the biggest money maker, he said.

The most recent auction held in 2014 netted roughly $384,000, Martone recalled.

Auction earnings will go to the state’s general fund, though any rightful owner or their family can reclaim the sale proceeds if they come forward. For those looking to collect auction money, anyone can search their name on the state database and then file a claim for free at: findrimoney.com.

In the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023, Diossa’s office reported returning over $17 million in unclaimed funds.