Special Auctions Celebrate 250th Anniversary of Declaration of Independence
Close up of all signatures on the Emancipation Proclamation signed by Abraham Lincoln at Christie's We the People auction
Foundational American documents from the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries will be offered at Christie’s New York later this month in two sales marking the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
We The People: America at 250 and The American Collector will include nine auctions and around 700 lots, taking place online and at Rockefeller Center January 13-28.
Highlights of We the People include:
- a contemporary broadside edition of the Declaration of Independence, published July 12-16, in Exeter, New Hampshire by Robert Luist Fowle (estimate: $3m– $5m)
- a printed copy with handwritten edits of the second draft of the Constitution belonging to the Founding Father Rufus King, a document believed to be the only obtainable copy of any printed draft of the Constitution (estimate: $3m–$5m)
- one of only 27 known copies of a version of the Emancipation Proclamation signed by President Abraham Lincoln, Secretary of State William Seward, and Lincoln’s secretary John Nicholay (estimate: $3m–$5m)
- the April 1, 1976 contract that founded the Apple Computer Company, signed by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak (estimate: $2m–$4m)
Among the highlights of The American Collector sale is a handwritten letter from President Carter to Mrs Carter on White House Stationary wishing her happy birthday with the message “It’s nice to be growing old together with you" that comes from the Private Collection of President and Mrs. Jimmy Carter (estimate: $2,000-$3,000).
