11 Most Expensive Ransoms Ever Paid

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11.Atahualpa, 1532

Nominal value of the ransom: 13,000 pounds of gold and 26,000 pounds of silver

Value in 2015 USD: 12 million (based on the price of gold and silver)

After being captured by Francisco Pizarro in disastrous Battle of Cajamarca, the last Incan emperor Atahualpa tried to buy his freedom back by offering to fill the room with gold and silver. Pizarro accepted and the room measuring 22 feet long and 17 feet wide up to a height of 8 feet was filled once with gold and twice with silver. It took two months for the Incas to gather the incredible amount of treasure to Cajamarca. The Spaniards melted everything down into bullions in order to get a fair assessment of the value (and pay the usual 20% tax to the Spanish crown). It amounted to 13,000 pounds of gold and 26,000 pounds of silver. Pizarro was delighted, but that didn’t stop him from killing Atahualpa several months later.

Most Expensive Ransoms Ever Paid - Atahualpa

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