Guernsey's, a New York auction house, launched a new event placing rare and unusual items in the U.S. presidential history for sale. The company said that some of the proceeds would go toward the construction of a new American museum.
As the celebrations for the upcoming election unfold, rare items from U.S. presidential history are hitting the auction block, reminding everyone where it all began: a lock of George Washington’s hair, a flag that adorned Abraham Lincoln's casket, the plaster model for his famous statue in the Washington Monument and stunning presidential portraits from a family studio collection.
The American flag that draped Abraham Lincoln's casket was seen by millions of Americans who bid farewell to the assassinated president in April 1865. Measuring 2.4 meters (7.9 feet) long, it covered the casket as it journeyed from Washington to his burial site in Springfield, Illinois and is now valued at between $800,000 and $1.2 million.
Another unique American flag up for auction is a 49-star flag from 1959, created after Alaska joined the Union but before Hawaii became the 50th state. At the time, the government decided against producing more 49-star flags, anticipating Hawaii's upcoming statehood and the shift to 50-star flags.
However, President Dwight Eisenhower's Oval Office still needed a distinguished display, so this impressive flag was specially crafted to stand behind his desk, symbolizing this unique moment in American history.
As for George Washington, the auction house owners explained that a lock of his graying hair had been preserved in a locket that was gifted to a family friend and passed down through generations — until it reached a Philadelphia museum which is now putting it up for sale.
The delicate hair, likely cut from Washington’s head shortly before or after his death in 1799 at age 67, is contained in a hand-crafted brass and glass locket.
Also included in the auction are rare portraits from the Bachrach Studio, long considered a preferred choice for American presidents and now revealed to the public for the first time.
Alongside these presidential portraits, including Franklin Roosevelt’s, are family snapshots from the Kennedy family, such as Jacqueline Kennedy’s wedding portrait. Among the special items is also the studio chair where numerous icons sat for their portraits, from Albert Einstein to Donald Trump and Meryl Streep.
Founded in 1868, the Baltimore studio is the oldest continuously operating photography studio in the world, having documented every American president since Abraham Lincoln, including the only photo of him during his famous Civil War speech at the Gettysburg National Cemetery.
Another famous presidential portrait of Abraham Lincoln available for auction was painted by artist Francis Bicknell Carpenter. Carpenter created this portrait as part of his preparations for the well-known painting "First Reading of the Emancipation Proclamation by President Lincoln," which currently hangs in the U.S. Capitol.
Other famous paintings include the "Monumental Lincoln Deathbed" by James Burnes, painted in 1866, along with the rare plaster model for the famous statue created by Daniel Chester French at the Washington, D.C. memorial.
French, considered one of America’s greatest sculptors, created the figure of the "Minute Man" in 1875, depicting a farmer who became a soldier in the Revolutionary War fighting for the young nation. The statue, located in the center of Concord, Massachusetts, became an American icon, used by the government during wartime to raise funds through war bonds and savings.
Decades later, French received the honor of designing one of the most iconic and beloved works in the U.S.: his statue of Abraham Lincoln at the famous memorial in Washington. The rare plaster models for these two renowned works will also be up for sale.
Other artistic works being auctioned include impressionistic portrait sculptures of presidents by sculptor Robert Berks — the first to have his works featured on the cover of Time magazine. His statue of John F. Kennedy also received the exceptional honor of being displayed above the podium at the White House.
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