Bay of Pigs Map Signed and Annotated by Fidel Castro to Auction
The Bay of Pigs map annotated by Fidel Castro
A hand-annotated map of the Bay of Pigs invasion signed by Fidel Castro is among the highlights of RR Auction's November Fine Autographs and Artifacts sale which also pays tribute to President John F. Kennedy.
Created during a 1977 interview with journalist Bill Moyers, the map details Castro's unique perspective of the 1961 invasion. The map includes his annotations of U.S. fleet positions, the route of the invasion force, and a detailed account of each day's events.
A special section in the auction focuses on JFK including two of his hand-drawn sketches of the PT-109 incident drawn for a screenwriter during his time as a technical advisor for the television series Navy Log. These illustrate the layout and collision of the PT-109 patrol boat. Also going under the hammer is a Tiffany & Co. sterling silver calendar commemorating the Cuban Missile Crisis, presented by President Kennedy to U.S. Army Chief of Staff General Earle Wheeler. It is believed that Kennedy commissioned just 34 of these calendars as a token of gratitude for his closest advisors during the crisis.
Other highlights include:
* the complete piano score of the Polish song Wiosna, paroles de Witwicki by Frédéric Chopin, for one singing voice with piano accompaniment, probably in the spring of 1838, set to a text by Stefan Witwicki
* Rocky Graziano's prison archive including early signatures of his legal name (Rocco Barbella), mug shot, fingerprints, and prison questionnaire in which he declares "I am going to be a Boxer when I get out."
* Queen Elizabeth II handwritten autograph signed letter on her engagement to Prince Philip, on Balmoral Castle letterhead, August 11, 1947
Bidding ends on November 13.
