The Pennsylvania Treasury vault has over $4.5 billion worth of unclaimed property. Is some of it yours?

Twice a year the Pennsylvania Treasury Department sells off unclaimed items from its vault to make room for new items. This week, the Treasury put over 4,200 items up for auction with an estimated total value of over $250,000, which includes gold bars from Vietnam, an Oscar Mayer whistle, and antique baseball cards.

“You never know what you’re gonna find,” State Treasurer Stacy Garrity said in a video about the auction.

The Pennsylvania Treasury has the largest working vault in the country, Garrity said, but it also estimates that about 1 in 10 Pennsylvanians have unclaimed property within it. The items that end up as unclaimed can come from abandoned safe deposit boxes, evidence from police departments, and other sources such as hospitals, nursing homes, or colleges.

Before putting the items up for sale, the treasury spends at least three years looking for the item’s rightful owners. Then, it holds two auctions a year and keeps the proceeds of the sale in perpetuity in case the owners ever come forward.

Are there any items that don’t go to auction? Yes. The vault has around 450 military medals and decorations that are excluded from the auctions, despite being unclaimed.

“I’m a veteran, so to me those are the most priceless items in our vault,” Garrity said. “We will never stop looking for the veterans who earned those medals and their families.”

The vault currently has more than $4.5 billion worth of unclaimed property, and the average claim is around $1,600, according to the Treasury. Those curious to find out whether any of their family’s personal items have ended up in the vault can check the Treasury’s website.

Oscar Mayer whistle

The company known for its cold cuts has been handing out whistles for years, although the design has changed several times.

Gold bars from Vietnam

How did these get from Vietnam to the Pennsylvania Treasury vault? The mystery remains.

Baseball Cards

This antique collection of 25 baseball cards from the early 1900s includes Cy Young among other Hall of Famers.

Jewelry

One of the many jewelry items up for sale was an 18-karat gold bangle with diamonds and sapphires.

Silver

This 100-ounce silver bar bears the name Engelhard, which recalls the company that used to produce them.