The 7-pound gold bar that is among the unclaimed property the New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department plans to auction next week belongs to the surviving family members of a Russian immigrant.
That's according to Albuquerque attorney Jennifer Noya, who is representing the family.
She says finding the gold bar appeared to be a lost cause until one of the family members, Sonya Burke, spotted it during a television newscast.
Burke says she remembers playing with bar as a child and that her grandfather had used it as a door stop in his Manhattan apartment.
The bar is now valued around $113,000 and has attracted interest from potential bidders.
State officials say the family will have to file a claim and only if the claim proves ownership, can the bar be returned.
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Information from: KRQE-TV, http://www.krqe.com
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.