Lock of Washington's hair and other presidential history aficionados at auction
1/11/2024 6:02
As the world turns its
attention to the U.S. election on Nov. 5, presidential history
aficionados may be particularly interested in an auction later
in the month that has objects on sale ranging from a lock of
George Washington's hair to a flag that accompanied Abraham
Lincoln to his final resting place.
"We're conducting an auction of a number of the most
historic objects relating to American history that has ever come
up for sale," said Arlan Ettinger, president of New York-based
Guernsey's auction house.
One of the most intriguing items is the strands of hair of
Washington, the very first U.S. president, who died in 1799. The
graying hair has been preserved in a locket that was given to a
family friend and passed down the generations.
There is also a U.S. flag that was draped on Lincoln's
coffin as it traveled in 1865 from Washington to Springfield,
Illinois, where he is buried.
It has a sale estimate range of $800,000 to $1.2 million,
although putting a value on such a unique item was difficult,
said Ettinger.
A rare 49-star flag dating from the period in 1959 after
Alaska joined the union but before Hawaii was added will also be
among the items auctioned. That flag was in the White House
during the presidency of Dwight Eisenhower.
The auction also will include presidential portraits from
the Bachrach photography studio, many never before seen in
public, and a portrait of Lincoln made by Francis Bicknell
Carpenter as a study for his painting, "First Reading of the
Emancipation Proclamation by President Lincoln," which hangs
today in the U.S. Capitol building.
The Nov. 22 sale will be conducted online and live at the
Arader Galleries in New York City.
"We don't know what's going to happen at the election, but
one way or another, there's great focus on the Office of
Presidency right now and American history," Ettinger said.
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