Crafting Precious Metal Magnificence
Our Story
Captain Coda,
The adventure begins!
My fascination with treasure started me on a journey back when I was a young child. I used to sneak in to my parent’s bedroom and “borrow” special coins from a box in their closet. I would dig small holes in the hillside on our property only to dig them up later and pretend that I had discovered treasure. It was so exciting to me.
I was infatuated with any movie that involved treasure of any kind. These usually involved adventurous treasure hunts that led the characters on a journey of discovery. Some of the titles that stand out the most are: Goonies, Raiders of the lost ark, The Hobbit and Lord of the ring series. Romancing the stone, Pirates of the Caribbean, Hook, Cutthroat Island, and the Count of Monte Cristo. All of these movies immersed me in the fantasy and continued to fuel my interest. As I grew, I refined my interests to seek the finer things in life. Every one of my siblings have some sort of artistic talent. I believe that genetically, this came from my mom’s side of the family. She was an advanced art teacher at the high school in our town. She was an avid painter and loved ceramics and crafts of all sorts.
My talent was having the “Eye of the Master”. I was always aware of the beauty that surrounded me and could recognize and appreciate the unique, unusual and extraordinary artistic abilities in other people.
When I could finally afford to, I start collecting things that held this appeal. I began my own hoard of precious things. I started my collection with precious stones, gems, jewelry, which included Native American sterling silver, and turquoise fashioned into rings, cuffs, bolo ties, pendants, pins, and squash blossoms. I would go on pilgrimages into New Mexico searching for these items, visiting trading posts and auction houses along the way. I also enjoyed online auction houses which opened my eyes to other styles and genres like bullion (mostly Canadian mint.) My brother in law gave me an America the beautiful 5oz round for Christmas, back in 2014 which instantly sparked my interest in pure 999 fine silver. I started adding numismatics to my growing treasure and silver quickly stole much of the spotlight.
One day I was in a waiting area while my Hyundai Tucson was being worked on. I was just messing around and googled “Pirate treasure”. (I have always been cursed with extreme sea sickness). Unfortunately, this prohibited me from enjoying boats, or scuba. I find it painfully ironically that I will never travel the seas as I have always wanted, exploring shipwrecks and finding that elusive “sunken treasure”. I still hold onto this dream though. Just like I was as a young boy I set out searching for a treasure chest on land if not the Sea. I still believe that X marks the spot! When I googled pirate treasure, suddenly MK BarZ and Bullion popped up. Here I found crusty, crude and modern pirate treasure? No way! I was shocked. Since Sea legs were not an option, I thought to myself, “I could BUY some pirate treasure and fill up my own chest!” It was an incredible little fantasy. But the impulse was strong and kept pulling me back and I studied multiple designs from MK BarZ.
I knew they were very special. I found them on eBay and made offers until it was accepted and bought my very first 3 x 1ounce rounds. The design is the dancing skeleton with a treasure chest behind his back and a coin flipping out of his hand into the treasure Chest. I was so excited I could barely contain myself. MK BarZ had so many designs on eBay to dream of owning it was crazy. I would scan through them for hours. I quickly filled my basket and then plundered bit by bit, because I couldn’t afford it all at once. (LOL) Back then if you looked long enough an automatic “X” would pop up and a Code for 10% Off would entice the “triggee” to be pulled. I loved to try to get that “X” to pop up. It was the best. When the treasures arrived, I was hooked and couldn’t wait to get more, and of course I did. Eventually, I had an MK Barz original old school ingot forged into a ring that I could wear around daily. I emailed that picture to Michael Kabrin, which broke the ice to more emails and phone calls and then I switched tack and began raiding everything possible and of course only the best possible pieces. A friendship sparked between us in the midst of all of the battles. Mike sparked my excitement because he was so passionate about what he did. It was contagious. It was Mike who first told me about the Instagram community and specifically about Tommy Haines with Stacking NYC.
I was familiar with auctions because of previous experience with the Native American Jewelry through iCollector.com so it wasn’t too uncomfortable to request friendship with Tommy. He was invaluable to me since I was still wet behind the ears in this new venture and he taught me so much and guided me through the process. I cannot thank these guys enough for helping a newbie and showing me the ropes and I intend to pay it forward. Soon thereafter I enjoyed my first live auction with real bids. I was shaking with adrenaline. It was so fun and winning some of the pieces in the battles was such a rush but the banter between everyone in the auction was another huge part of that too. Tommy of Stacking NYC and MK BarZ and Bullion lured me onto a voyage, like the Sirens of the Sea, I was led into an otherworldly, endless trove of modern poured silver art.
From here, I gained momentum as I gained knowledge of hundreds of creators while witnessing their amazing talent and skill in their craft. These pieces were beautiful, unique, valuable and a true treasure for our world. I was getting pretty savvy at raiding native American jewelry from certain artists. I knew they would not only hold their value, but would exceed all expectations and command way more than market value. I knew that in the same way, these poured silver art pieces were seemingly undervalued but would eventually gain value because of the artistic talent and abilities needed just to create them. It is way more than just silver and just like any art market, The high demand and rarity of the piece only drives up the value even to the extreme. I can spot potential, I can appreciate certain styling, I have good instincts if I believe pieces are going to become popular. As the years drifted by, I was caught in the current and was proven right time and time again. Since my start as a novice collector ten years ago, the industry has exploded from somewhere around 30 known modern pour silver artists/creators on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook, etc. to numbers now breaking into a thousand and climbing. There is a shiny future for this very unique niche of art AND income. I have been blessed to witnessed a big part of its growth and also its evolution.
I love to watch YouTube videos from one of the greatest modern Pirates of our time “silver slacker”. It boggled my mind when he would open 300 or more ounces of silver pours on the television right in front of me and I could not believe it. It seemed almost unreachable. How can I do something like that and have that much exciting treasure come right to the door and help me fill my own treasure chest? I then thought, diversify! “How many different artist’s pieces could I acquire to have the spiciest representative collection of all time?” Thus began my greatest pilgrimage ever. I set off in hot pursuit owning and trading and selling some of the best works from everyone, everywhere. One of the best things about poured silver or poured Precious Metal art is it always changing. I am never bored. There is always something or someone new and fresh. Besides being valuable, they are all gorgeous! I definitely do my homework. I have spent countless hours to build my treasure piles. Personally, I love pieces that are the only ones ever made. I enjoy the 1 of 1’s and the prototypes. They are very special. The more rare they are, the more I want them.
When I finally fulfilled my wildest fantasies and filled my own treasure chest I expanded my collection further. What began with a small treasure chest filled to overflowing being filled quickly grew into to a bigger chest and then piece by piece into my current stash. I get to experience an impressive full-immersion art gallery with a wide range to choose from. My collection features 3-D statues, bars, rounds, fractional’s, multiple styles of techniques, each possessing their own powerful signature looks.
I always love to share the pieces that I acquire so my followers can enjoy the experience with me. Over the years I have grown and advanced into an extreme collector, with knowledge of the artist, their background and the story each piece tells. And just as I had “Meee Matey’zzz” give me a hand to get started, I have and will always help to influence newcomers to get them excited about the hand-poured side of stacking and to help them diversify and not just stay with Numismatics. For so many years, so many people were messaging me about certain pieces, history about them, who made them, the makers marks or hallmarks, who was it? I had a ton of this information after all my own research and savvy raiding. I love helping creators and collectors get noticed and get appropriate recognition for their skills. I wanted people to explore and acquire and enjoy this exciting world of pours. It became obvious to me that this industry was seriously lacking a reference or a resource with all of the gathered information that would be easy to navigate.
Many refer to my collection as “the museum”. One moment stands out for me in an auction with Tommy at stacking NYC I called my collection, “The Poured New World over us” Then evolved and became “museum” and just stuck.
My goal is to feature artist’s works and raise awareness about them the history and details and special highlights. I officially started The Poured New World Museum IG page along with a YouTube page. Because these are collectible and knowledge only increases the value to the individuals in the collecting community, all of this information must be documented somewhere. I have nearly 300 creators work at my fingertips, I feel strongly that this was a very appropriate mission for me to embark on. I am the curator of the poured New World museum. My name is —Captain Coda—the modern day pirate.
My hope is to help everyone in this industry; newcomers, economists wishing to acquiring silver for a stable source of income, hobbyists, to more enthusiastic collectors, pour artist, pouring supplies resources, powder monkeys and greenhorns to feel comfortable about information that they are gathering from this website. I want you all to know that I can and will help you to safely fill your own treasure chests, gain knowledge and information and network within our community.
Raid what you can, when you can and mostly raid what you like, and there will be no regrets. Precious Metals will always be valuable. They have withstood the test of time, and it will continue to impress us. Have fun with your treasure and know that poured silver art is way more than just silver. It is somebody’s blood, sweat, tears, heart, soul, hours of trial and error, mistakes, re-melting, over and over and over again, before finally achieving success and now…it can be yours.
Our Purpose
At The Poured New World Museum, our mission is to elevate the appreciation and recognition of precious metal artwork. We strive to provide artists with a platform to showcase their talent and connect with a community that values their unique creations. Through our dedication to quality, creativity, and innovation, we aim to enrich the artistic landscape and inspire art enthusiasts worldwide.
Meet Your Captain
Micah Cooper
Founder