Pawn Stars: Extremely Rare Taj Mahal Sunken Treasure (Season 2)

RICK: So what have you got? I've got something here that is more valuable than anything, I guarantee, you've, ever seen in this shop. Have a clump of rupees, that were minted in 1702 by the son of the man who built the Taj Mahal. Man's name was Mohi-ud-Din, Muhammad Aurangzeb Alamgir, otherwise known as Emperor Aurangzeb. That took you a while to, remember that, didn't it? Yeah, it did. This clump of treasure coin is known as the Taj Mahal treasure because it truly is the only sunken treasure related to the Taj Mahal dynasty. The reason why I'm here. today is because I had these in an auction here,. and it did not sell, so I'm coming over. to see the guys here. And hopefully, they'll, open their wallets. So what can you, tell me about these? They were minted. in Surat, India. They went to the bottom. of the ocean in 1702, and were recovered by Arthur. C. Clarke and his dive partner. RICK: Didn't he write a few books about it? Yeah. He wrote two books about it. In fact, before he really, started writing heavily about science fiction, he. was an avid scuba diver. And when they. discovered it in 1961, Clarke and his dive, partner, Mike Wilson, swam over the edge of a reef,, and here, this shipwreck and all these silver coins were, laying out all over the bottom. RICK: This is one of the. most well documented treasure discoveries in history. I've read books about this wreck. Ever since I started working in the pawn business, I've wanted sunken treasure. And this is the motherlode. I mean, I've had a few individual coins come in, but nothing like this. They were minted. in Surat, India, and then were headed on to the Orient, along the spice route, but they never made it there. They were wrecked in a typhoon, and wound up on a shipwreck there, and they sat,

underwater for that long. The reason why they're. in such good shape is because they were laying up, against some iron object, most likely a cannon, and the cannon oxidizes faster than the silver does, just like a sink on your boat does. So that's why the coins aren't touched. The natural electrolysis, in the water went through the cannon, instead of the silver first, so the silver is perfectly preserved. So how did you come in possession of them? Well, I did a documentary. with Arthur C. Clarke in 1993. His family consigned. it to me, and we've been trying to sell it. You got paperwork. on them, right? Yes, signed by. Arthur C. Clarke. Everything he's, telling me about this adds up with everything I've read. It's authentic. It's the real thing, and I, cannot believe it is sitting in my shop. I know it's worth a fortune, but the question is, what does he consider a fortune? One of the things that still. gives me a shiver up my spine is that these coins were, minted 30 years before George Washington was born. These were worth a lot of, money, back in those days, because they were silver. The coin of the realm,. for the common folks, were copper or bronze. By weight, it's a little over 25 pounds. And at 25 pounds, it averages out to about 750 coins in here. Can I buy it for silver scrap? No. No, you can't. What makes these so valuable is that they are still in clumped form. 99% of treasure coins. are always reduced down to individual coins, and sold off that way. RICK: It's extremely rare to, have a treasure collection this large. It's even more rare to have. them naturally fused together like this. This is unique, and. unique usually cost money. The fact that it's all clumped together now and hasn't been disassembled, makes it much more valuable, as I'm sure you understand. from some of the things that you sell here. So how much do,

you want for it? I'd like to get. $700,000 for it. It's a lot of money. It is a lot of money. And because we know the rarity,. there were only three of them in the world. Now there's only two. Originally, there were three clumps of coins. The one that's here in the US,, one that's in the Clark family archives, and a third that was, in a museum in Colombo, Sri Lanka. But when the 2004, tsunami hit, the sea reclaimed that clump of coins, and they've never found it. So now there's only two of them in the world. RICK: I really,. really want this. I mean, this thing, is truly incredible. But tying up 3/4 of a million dollars in one item, it could bankrupt this shop. I'd love to have it. It's a cool item. I mean, I would love to have it in my shop. But I'm not going to spend that kind of money. If I buy this off you, I got to put it in an auction, and it might take 5 or 10 years. Right. Which means my money's, tied up for a long time. It's an investment. No, it's a gamble. My biggest problem. here is this guy has already told me it didn't. meet reserve at auction. I have to buy this thing at a price where I can sell it quickly and make a profit. All I can do now. is make an offer. Kind of want to give you $200,000 for it. 200? Yeah. No. I mean, that's-- I go a little bit more, but it's not going to be much. That's what I can do. I mean, there's some things, even too expensive for me. I respect that. I got to hold out for more. But, hey, thanks very much. Thanks for your time. All right., Sorry I couldn't do business. I mean, it's just-- you just. got to look at my perspective and it's a lot of money. That it is. RICK: I knew it was a long shot, and I'm really disappointed. I wasn't able to. buy the treasure. But at the same time, I'm a little bit relieved. Because if I had, to tell The Old Man I shelled out a quarter. of a million dollars, he would have kicked my ass.,