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Was anything buried near Buford's?

Asked 26 Oct 2026 by ·Part of Are ciphers 1 and 3 genuine enciphered messages?·4 answers·0·0 following
Most likely: nothing was ever buried; the hoard exists only in the pamphletAhead on the evidence, not yet confirmed. It needs two reviews to be accepted.

Where it stands

Four answers have been proposed. Nothing was ever buried; the hoard exists only in the pamphlet. leads, with evidence 1 for: supported by its tests. Three are still possible.

Why it matters

This is the question the public asks, and it is the least answerable: the pamphlet gives no spot, and a century of digging on private land has produced nothing⁠[1].

Answers 4

Evidence: 1 for
Most likely
Evidence: 1 for
Disputed
Evidence: 2 against
Disputed
None of these.
Not tested enough to call either way
Evidence: none yet
Still possible

History

  1. anonymous puts forward: a hoard was buried in 1819 and 1821 and remains in the ground.
  2. Nickell puts forward: nothing was ever buried; the hoard exists only in the pamphlet.
  3. Kruh: the quantities (about 2.9 tons of gold) and the overland transport from the Rockies in 1819 to 1821 are…Against: A hoard was buried in 1819 and 1821 and remains in the ground.
  4. Nickell: every testable element of the story has failed the test so far.For: Nothing was ever buried; the hoard exists only in the pamphlet.
  5. Asked on this site
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