Heritage Auctions' recent sale, which we reported on, shows that JFK's assassination still looms large in the American public's mind.
Two pieces of memorabilia relating to his assassin's assassin - Jack Ruby who shot sniper Lee Harvey Oswald at close range - have sparked competition amongst bidders: Ruby's leg shackles and fedora hat.
The leg shackles were used by doctors to attach Ruby to his bed whilst he was dying. The idea was not to stop the convicted Ruby from escaping, but to stop extreme memorabilia hunters stealing his body if/when he died.
The sale price reminds us of that intensity of feeling: valued at $5,000 they doubled that and finally sold for $11,054.
The fedora was the truly famous hat Ruby was wearing when he shot Oswald. Listed at $35,000, intrigued bidders pushed the price up to $53,775.
 John F Kennedy's last signature (Click to enlarge) |
Likewise JFK's final autograph: a signature on a newspaper from the morning of his death nearly doubled its $20,000 expected price to sell for $39,000. The buyer obviously values it more highly still, as it has now been insured for $250,000.
Martin Luther King's rocking chair had earlier sold for $8,365.
At Paul Fraser Collectibles, we currently have two highly collectible pieces for those interested in Kennedy and King: A campaign program signed by both JFK and his wife, and a signed copy of Martin Luther King's book Stride Toward Freedom.
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