Window shoppers trickled into the State House Monday to peer at some of the items up for grab at this Saturday’s unclaimed property auction on EBay.
While most of the stuff is a little drab – pocket watches, coins, and gold bracelets – some of the items offer a unique charm.
Metro’s pick for the hottest item up for sale – a silver brandy warmer that dates back to 1707. That’s a classy purchase that you can really cozy up with this winter.
Other items were typical of what can be found in a typical safe deposit box: rings, necklaces, gold and silver bracelets, pearls, and old bills.
“We have everything from diamond engagement rings that are $17,500 all the way down to wheat pennies that are going to be listed for two cents. So really there is going to be something for everyone,” said Mark Bracken, assistant treasurer for the Unclaimed Properties division.
“Most of it will go to collectors and a lot of it will go to the every day person that is looking for that unique piece of jewelry.”
While a few of the window shoppers yesterday furiously scribbled notes, making it clear they planned to bid, most of them seemed to stumble on the display by accident.
“We came here out of curiosity, I don’t think we’re actually going to bid on anything because we’re not really familiar with any of these things,” said Patrick Benzie as he browsed.
Benzie’s favorite pick was a gold bar necklace that said “Credit Suisse One Ounce Gold.”
“It’s very opulent. It doesn’t really fit my wardrobe, but if I was a little flashier maybe I’d consider it.”
