每日英語跟讀 Ep.K596: 驚人發現：A Surprising Discovery: California Family Finds 1 Million Copper Pennies in Old Home
John Reyes, a realtor from southern California, faced an unexpected dilemma when helping his wife clean out her father's Los Angeles home. In the process, the family stumbled upon a hidden treasure: over 1 million copper pennies tucked away in a cramped crawlspace. The pennies, stored in numerous bank bags, hold a face value of $10,000 and potentially much more, according to KTLA News. This astounding find has left the family grappling with what to do with this substantial amount of coins.
加州南部的房產經紀人約翰·雷耶斯（John Reyes）在幫助妻子清理她父親在洛杉磯的家時，遇到了一個意外的困境。在這個過程中，這個家庭意外地發現了一個藏匿在狹小隔層爬行空間中的寶藏：一百多萬枚美分硬幣。根據KTLA新聞的報導，這些美分存放在許多銀行袋中，按面值價值為1萬美元，但實際價值可能遠遠超過這個數字。這個驚人的發現讓這個家庭陷入了如何處理這麼大量的硬幣的苦惱之中。
The 1900s-era home, once belonging to John's father-in-law, Fritz, is believed to have served as a bed and breakfast. Fritz and his brother, immigrants from Germany, resided in the house for decades until Fritz's passing and his brother's subsequent relocation. In their quest to clean out and renovate the property for modern use, the family encountered significant challenges. Reyes described the laborious process of removing items of varying significance, which took several years. It was during this process that they made the remarkable discovery hidden within the crawlspace.
這座建於1900年代的房子原屬於約翰的岳父弗里茨（Fritz），據信曾經是一家旅館。弗里茨和他的兄弟，來自德國的移民，在這所房子裡住了數十年，直到弗里茨去世並且他的兄弟搬離。在清理並翻新這所房子以適應現代使用的過程中，這個家庭遇到了很大的困難。雷耶斯描述了清理不同重要性物品的費時過程，共花了他們數年的時間。就在這個過程中，他們在爬行空間裡發現了這個令人驚奇的寶藏。
Upon further exploration, the family uncovered loose pennies, once encased in deteriorated paper rolls, along with crates, boxes, and numerous coin bags containing copper pennies from past decades. Reyes mentioned that some of the banks associated with these coins no longer exist, adding to the intrigue. To confirm their authenticity, the family tested a sample of the pennies, verifying that they were indeed made of copper. In contrast, modern pennies are composed of copper-plated zinc, with zinc-coated steel pennies produced during World War II when copper was in high demand. Since 1982, pennies have primarily been made from zinc.
在進一步探索中，這個家庭發現了散落的美分硬幣，曾經被破爛的紙卷包裹著，還有一些木箱、紙箱和許多過去幾十年裝滿銅美分的硬幣袋。雷耶斯提到，其中一些與這些硬幣有關的銀行已不存在，這增添了一些神秘感。為了確認它們的真實性，這個家庭測試了一小部分的硬幣，證實它們確實是由銅製成的。相比之下，現代的美分硬幣由鍍銅鋅製成，而在二戰期間，由於銅的需求量很高，美分硬幣曾經是由鍍鋅鋼製成的。自1982年以來，便士主要是由鋅製成。
While estimating that they had accumulated approximately 1 million pennies based on the weight of the bags, the family encountered challenges when attempting to cash in on their value. Initially considering Coinstar, Reyes abandoned the idea due to the 8% fee associated with the service. Contacting banks proved futile as well, as the vast number of coins exceeded their vault capacities. Additionally, the family remains hopeful that among the coin bags, there may be a rare penny worth millions on its own. Aware of the potential value and uniqueness of their find, the family has listed the hoard for sale on OfferUp, an online resale platform, with an asking price of $25,000. While they have received offers for individual coins, no one has yet made an offer for the entire collection.
家庭根據袋子的重量估計，他們累積了大約一百萬枚美分硬幣，但是當他們試圖兌現這些美分硬幣的價值時，遇到了困難。一開始，雷耶斯考慮使用Coinstar服務，但由於該服務收取8%的費用，他放棄了這個想法。聯繫銀行也無果，因為這麼多的硬幣超出了他們的金庫容量。此外，家庭仍然希望在這些硬幣袋中可能有一枚價值數百萬的罕見便士。意識到他們發現的硬幣的潛在價值和獨特性，家庭已經在線上轉售平台OfferUp將這些硬幣列出待售，要價2.5萬美元。儘管他們收到了關於個別硬幣的報價，但還沒有人提出收購全部收藏的申請。
Reference article: https://www.foxnews.com/lifestyle/california-family-finds-1-million-copper-pennies-old-home