A rare coin dealer says that a Northern California couple basically tripped over $10 million dollars last year when they discovered a can of old coins while out walking their dog.

The couple were walking on their property in Sierra Nevada when they noticed a decaying canister sticking up from the ground. They eventually discovered eight cans in all, filled with more than a thousand gold coins, holding a face value of $27,980.

Coin dealer Don Kagin, who is representing the anonymous couple, extolled the "excellent mint condition," of coins, valuing the entire "Saddle Ridge Horde" collection at $10 million.

But it wouldn't be the first time a buried coin collection fetched millions.

According to "American Coin Treasures and Hoards," the bible of buried treasure finds, the biggest hoard of gold coins dug up before Saddle Ridge was a collection found by construction workers in Jackson, Tenn., in 1985. It had a face value of $4,500 and sold for $1 million.

[image via AP]