A collection of Items from abandoned safe deposit boxes, turned over to the Iowa State Treasurer's OfficePhoto: Sue Danielson
(Des Moines, IA) -- The Iowa State Treasurer's Office planning to auction off a Michael Jordan rookie card, from a forgotten safe deposit box. The card is in near mint condition and could be worth thousands of dollars. Treasurer Roby Smith says it will be included in an upcoming auction September 5-20
Each year, the Iowa Treasurer's Office gets up to 300 abandoned safe deposit boxes and when they room out of storage space, they're forced to start auctioning off items. Before that happens, the office searches for the owner by mail and other ways. Proceeds remain in the Great Iowa Treasure Hunt, for the rightful owners to claim. If the owner comes forward before the auction, the items will be returned rather than sold.
“After some excitement from the first auction earlier this year, we sent a Michael Jordan rookie card to be evaluated by Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA),” said State Treasurer Roby Smith. “The card has been sent back to us with a rating of PSA 7, and we’ll be adding the rookie card as a lot in our upcoming auction. Make sure to check it out and get a peek of this rare item!”
Lone Star Auctioneers will manage the auction. Lonestar will appraise each item in the box and will set the minimum bid. The auction website link is IowaUnclaimedProperty.org. Bidding is open to anyone registered and approved on Lone Star Auctioneers with a valid U.S. mailing address.