There is a difference between putting someone under duress and making an offer they can't refuse.
If your wedding ring is not “for sale” for any amount of money, I might still be able to coerce you into “selling” it by putting a gun against your (or your spouse's!) head. But then it wasn't “for sale” in any real sense, because you didn't freely agree to the sale. The same applies to your hostage situation.
However, if you sell your wedding ring for $1,000,000 cash, take it or leave it, then you were willing to sell it, and thus, in my opinion, it was for sale.
Of course there is some grey area (what if you need money to cure a terrible disease?) but that doesn't change the principle: if you'd freely sell something precious for a lot of money, it was for sale. Being offered large amount of money is not, in itself, an extenuating circumstance.
If your wedding ring is not “for sale” for any amount of money, I might still be able to coerce you into “selling” it by putting a gun against your (or your spouse's!) head. But then it wasn't “for sale” in any real sense, because you didn't freely agree to the sale. The same applies to your hostage situation.
However, if you sell your wedding ring for $1,000,000 cash, take it or leave it, then you were willing to sell it, and thus, in my opinion, it was for sale.
Of course there is some grey area (what if you need money to cure a terrible disease?) but that doesn't change the principle: if you'd freely sell something precious for a lot of money, it was for sale. Being offered large amount of money is not, in itself, an extenuating circumstance.