A limited-edition LG air conditioner sold nearly 20 years ago has become the object of a treasure hunt in South Korea after its front logo was found to be made of pure gold.
The renewed interest followed a viral video showing the logo from an old LG Whisen air conditioner being sold for about 713,000 won (£360) amid a sharp spike in global gold prices.
The video was uploaded on 11 December by a Seoul-based jewellery shop owner and YouTuber identified by local media as Ringring Unni.
It shows a customer bringing in a small gold piece removed from her air conditioner.
“The logo was attached to the front of the air conditioner and it was advertised at the time as being made of gold,” she is heard saying.
She adds that a delivery worker had told her years ago that the logo was made from gold.
After melting and analysing the piece, Ringring Unni confirmed it was made of pure gold.
“It is not 18-karat gold, but pure gold,” she tells the customer. “The purity came out at 99.3 per cent.”
The six-letter “Whisen” logo weighed about 3.75 grams, equivalent to one “don”, a traditional South Korean unit of weight for gold.
Ringring Unni bought the piece for 713,000 won.
The video has received around 1.1 million views.
The gold logo purchased by Ringring Unni is believed to have come from a Whisen air conditioner released in 2005.
LG Electronics sold 10,000 units of the product to mark five consecutive years as the world’s top-selling air conditioner brand.
“Back then, they told me it would be worth about 10,000 won if you removed it,” the customer said, according to The Korea Herald.
In 2005, 3.75 grams of gold – the amount used in the logo – was priced at between 50,000 and 70,000 won. On Tuesday, the same amount was valued at 763,425 won, based on the Korea Exchange’s closing price.
A second customer brought a Whisen logo to the jewellery shop on 15 December. In a follow-up video, the piece was appraised at 748,000 won.
Online reactions quickly followed. Some users described the discovery as “a total jackpot”, while others joked that “LG basically helped customers invest without them knowing”.
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