Treasure Hunters coming to Newton

NEWTON — The Treasure Hunters, one of the largest purchasing organizations in the world, will be at the Newton Holiday Inn Express, 6 North Park Drive in Newton, on April 26 and 27 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and April 28 from 9 a.m. to 4p.m. The Treasure Hunters look at common items such as coins, paper currency and musical instruments to purchase. Recently, the Treasure Hunters paid $23,000 for a $1,000 bill dating back to 1880. They also see common items that would otherwise be considered clutter, such as unworn, mismatched and even broken jewelry. “We encourage folks to bring in their old jewelry that just sits on the dresser at home,” said Matthew Enright, Senior Vice-President of Media Relations for the Treasure Hunters. “We took a pile of 14-karat gold jewelry off a visitors hand and they walked away with a check for $900.” The Treasure Hunters also see some of the world’s most rare and unusual collectibles. In Tampa, FL, they uncovered a 19th century electric chair. They found a rare 16th century authentic vampire killing kit passed down to a local resident by their German ancestor. They even purchased one of the world’s rarest guitars, a 1959 Gibson Les Paul, for over $100,000. The Treasure Hunters expect to see all types of items at this event including coins and paper currency issued prior to 1970, toys, dolls, trains, vintage jewelry, old and modern musical instruments, war memorabilia, gold and silver jewelry, costume jewelry, comic books, advertising memorabilia, swords, knives, daggers and the particularly unusual. “This event is characterized by what the community brings in,” said Enright. “I have a lot of folks ask me what this show is all about, and to be honest, it is determined by the items brought in that particular week. It keeps every event unique and interesting to say the least.” As the Treasure Hunters see as many uncommon items as they do common, they have to be prepared to quickly figure out what exactly they are looking at. Back in Springfield, IL, at their corporate headquarters, Treasure Hunters has an extensive research department ready to do some digging on certain items. “We don’t hesitate to involve our research department to get questions answered about certain pieces, and that enables us to make the best possible offers to our customers," said Enright. For more information about this event call 217-726-7590.