Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! This small rubber case represents one of the cooler pieces of military survival gear – a U.S. Navy “barter kit” filled with gold coins and rings meant to help downed pilots escape from hostile territory. What makes this one special is that it’s still sealed with all its valuable contents inside. These kits were serious business. Each contained about .9 troy ounces of gold (worth over $2,000 at today’s prices) and had to be signed in and out like a weapon. If a pilot used it during an escape, they had to account for every piece upon return. This particular kit is marked “IF FOUND RETURN TO/COMNAVAIRLANT (CNAL 34)/NORFOLK, VIRGINIA” and bears serial number “918.” It’s the Atlantic variation, which typically contained a mix of British Sovereigns, half Sovereigns, and French Francs, plus three gold rings. The x-ray confirms all that stuff is still in there. The COMNAVAIRLANT (Commander, Air Force Atlantic) designation dates this to the 1950s or later, though similar kits were used during WWII. Unlike modern survival gear which focuses on tools and supplies, these kits acknowledged the universal persuasive power of gold – whether bribing guards, paying for transportation, or buying silence from potential informants. This kit survived until 1980 when the Defense Logistics Agency auctioned it off in Columbus, Ohio. The included documentation traces its journey from government property to collector’s item. Given how many of these kits were opened and their contents scattered, finding an intact example like this is unusually rare.
“Unopened U.S. Navy Atlantic Escape and Evasion ‘Barter Kit.’” Rock Island Auction Company, https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/4094/344/unopened-us-navy-atlantic-escape-and-evasion-barter-kit. Accessed 7 Apr. 2025.
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