In Plain Sight

Dmitri Karamazov got me this far in juggling at our convention.

Disguising & Concealing Wealth

Disguising money — make it look like nothing important enough to steal. also intended to get big wealth past keen-eyed and highly suspicious border guards and other obstacles, such as tariffs and gangs and street stickup men — in fact, anyone who would take it away from you if they knew it had value. This single idea is the key to my wealth-protecting program, meant to help folks like you.

So how do you walk around relatively safely with a million dollars in your pocket? it’s easy, but there are a few tricks to learn.

Gemstones are a top answer, but the good gemstones are very visible and obviously valuable, while an ordinary penny, on the other hand, looks like chump change in the pocket, unworthy of close inspection.

I have a number of good ideas for hiding wealth, including art visibly hanging on the wall, and collectibles in the dresser drawer in plain sight — for instance, a pair of Elvis Presley’s socks with the certificate tucked inside.

Disguising wealth is an old and highly effective practice, and some folks actually hire themselves out to help someone get through the bumps and grinds of hiding money.

Here are some top-tier ways to carry or store serious money without making yourself a target:

1. Purloined Letter: In Plain Sight (But Invisible)

Penny Roll Trick: Hollow out a roll of pennies and replace most with tightly wound currency. A sealed, taped roll of pennies looks like it’s worth exactly 50 cents. Don’t depend on this ploy with someone overly curious or downright mean.
Fake Wallet Decoy: Carry a normal, beat-up wallet with small bills and old receipts—your real money is elsewhere (like in a belt or shoe). Problem is, this is an old gag.
Worn Book or Notebook: Hollow out a section to store cash. A travel journal full of scribbles makes a great disguise. You can easily buy a hollow cache book online, or a beer can or spray deodorant, but it’s old and everyone knows about these gimmicks.
Cheap Keychain Flashlight or Battery Pack: Some external battery packs can be hollowed out and resealed—looks completely normal, but it’s an extreme pain to make one of these, and they don’t always work — as a matter of fact, the keychain gimmick can fail bigtime, so keep reading, we’re getting there.

2. Jewelry and Wearables

Plain-Looking Jewelry with Hidden Value:
- Gold Chains Disguised as Brass or Steel – Tarnished or rough-looking gold blends in but retains value. Problem is, nobody knows what gold actually looks like, and anything shiny will be taken.
- Rings Set with Small, High-Value Diamonds – A simple band with a few discreet stones can be worth a fortune while looking ordinary, but once the diamonds are spotted, you have little chance of talking your way out of it — also, small diamonds are hard to sell for a lot of money.
Secret Pouches in Clothing or Shoes: Sew in a pocket in the lining of a jacket or inside a belt. Some tactical belts come with built-in zippered compartments. This only works if you get really really lucky, and if you don’t, you could be in real trouble.

3. High-Value Collectibles That Look Like Junk

Cheap-Looking Coins with Serious Value:
- Some rare pennies, quarters, or ancient coins can be worth thousands but look like pocket change, just junk, and will blend in with ordinary pocket change without standing out or calling attention to itself.
- Example: A 1909-S VDB copper penny can sell for as much as $100,000.00, but in a handful of change, nobody notices just a penny. You can choose your own value, and that coin is always saleable, always.
Old Stamps in a Scrapbook: High-value stamps are compact, easy to transport, and don’t look like much to the untrained eye. Problem is, when arriving at your destination, can you find a buyer? Stamp buyers are few and far between. Also, they may have seen the movie, “Charades” in which the stamp on the envelope is the entire fortune.
Comic Books or Trading Cards: Certain old comics can be worth many thousands. Looks like a childhood keepsake, just a pile of junk. I have several early comics like that, and they can easily be sandwiched in with modern comics and nobody but an expert will be able to tell that you’re carrying a fortune. I have several comics that answer to that description.

4. Art and Decor

Cheap-Looking Picture Frames with Hidden Storage: A thrift store painting can have a back panel hiding cash or valuables. Even better, use an ordinary ungimmicked frame and put in a Rembrandt etching of your financial choice, anywhere from a few thousand all the way up into the millions.
Super-Rare Antiquarian Books — This is my specialty. I can find very rare books that instantly sell to collectors if it becomes known that it is available. Some of those books that are very valuable and rare can be easily estimated in the tens of thousands of dollars, and are very desirable to the collectors out there. I have original Shakespeare Second Folio and more.
Holy Bible works wonders. Rembrandt etchings look perfectly at home inside the Bible, especially the religious themed etchings for which he was so famous. If you put them in right, they look just like illustrations in a Bible. Actually, I have plenty of super-rare lithos and etchings that I sell on a regular basis.
Everyday Items with Hidden Compartments:
- Hollowed-out furniture legs, table supports, or even inside a curtain rod, but again, if you get caught, it will not go well. It’s better to have something on you that looks like junk but isn’t.
- A cheap, thrift-store radio or TV set that doesn’t work but contains serious value inside used to work, but it’s old-hat now and won’t work under even the most fortunate circumstances because nobody even knows what a radio was, anymore. Don’t depend on this ploy to work, because it won’t.

5. Digital & Alternative Storage

Crypto on a Hidden Flash Drive: A plain USB drive can store millions in cryptocurrency—if you know how to secure it properly, but you have to find a way to hide the card from search, and that’s plenty hard to do, while a rare penny is always in plain sight and arouses no suspicion, among other coins in the pocket or purse.
Memory Cards or SD Cards: Encrypted digital wallets can be stored in something as simple as a cheap, used camera’s SD card. I sell such USB cards if you need one.
Gold Foil Notes: Some companies produce thin, real gold sheets that can be rolled up and hidden inside an old pen, but this doesn’t work with border guards. They take the pen away from you — possible weapon, and the gold isn’t worth much.

6. Concealed Carry Methods

Inside a Belt Buckle: There are survival belts that allow you to store currency in the buckle or strap.
Insoles of Shoes: Tape or sew money inside insoles for easy walking without raising suspicion.
Cigarette Pack Trick: A cigarette pack with a false bottom can store cash while looking like an ordinary pack of smokes.

Final Thoughts

The key is misdirection—make it look like nothing of interest, or something too trivial to steal. A scruffy book, a taped-up coin roll, or a forgotten jacket lining could be the safest bank in the world.

If you’re moving serious money, layer your methods—some in collectibles, some in disguise, some in crypto.

Do you have a specific scenario in mind—traveling anywhere, at home or abroad, or you’re hiding assets at home, or carrying personal wealth past very negative checkpoints when you’re trying to escape persecution?

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In the end, the best solution is the rare penny — right there, in plain sight, it can be very valuable, but it looks like, well, just a penny, and that’s the point.

This important U.S. Lincoln Wheat 1909S VDB Cent is highly valued.

The 1909-S VDB Lincoln cent is a highly sought-after coin among collectors, with its value significantly influenced by its condition and coloration. The most valuable example to date is a specimen graded MS67RD (Red) by the Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS), which sold for $168,000 in April 2022.

In the current market, prices for the 1909-S VDB Lincoln cent vary based on grade and appearance. For instance, a coin graded MS65 Red and Brown by PCGS recently sold for $66,000.

On platforms like eBay, these coins are listed with asking prices ranging from around $1,000 for very poor circulated examples to over $120,000 for top-graded specimens.

It’s important to note that the value of a 1909-S VDB Lincoln cent is heavily dependent on its grade, color designation (Red, Red-Brown, or Brown), and overall eye appeal. Coins with the “Red” designation and higher grades command the highest prices.

One thing is certain — coin collectors and dealers are all over the planet, every country has coin collectors and dealers eager to see very rare and valuable coins, and U.S. coins trade well all over the world.

1. High-Value Pennies That Look Worthless

Some pennies are worth a fortune but blend in with pocket change. A handful of ordinary-looking coins could be carrying millions:

1943 Copper Penny – Worth up to $250,000 (most 1943 pennies are steel, so a copper one is a goldmine).
1955 Double Die Penny – Looks like a regular wheat penny but can be worth $2,000–$50,000.
1974 Aluminum Penny – Only a few exist, and they’re worth a fortune.
1982 Small Date Copper Penny – Looks just like any other penny, but certain variations sell for $10,000+.
Indian Head Pennies (1860s–1909) – Some rare dates sell for $1,000+ but still look like old pocket change.

You could walk through a checkpoint with a pocketful of these and no one would blink an eye—even an experienced thief wouldn’t bother taking what you have on open display.

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My morning would not be complete without a complaint against the FBI firings, which will greatly endanger all of us on the good side of the law.