Gallery of History - Auctioneer of Historical Documents

Click on Image To Enlarge

autographs

Document 250621

MARY TODD LINCOLN'S HAIR
From the famed Roy P. Crocker and Malcolm Forbes collections.
Six authenticated strands of Mary Todd Lincoln's hair mounted on an 8½x11 page picturing the former First Lady and printed with the following statement: "Six strands of Mary Todd Lincoln's Hair Taken from an original lock with outstanding provenance. The lock was originally housed in a daguerreotype case and sold in the Sotheby Parke Bernet sale of the world famous Roy P. Crocker Historical Document Collection of the Lincoln savings and Loan Association, November 28, 1979 lot 260. It was purchased there by Malcolm Forbes Sr. And sold by The Forbes Collection at Christie's. Hair from Mary Todd Lincoln is about 100 times as scarce as that of her martyred husband Abe." On the verso are photocopy images of the catalog entry, the picture of the hair in its daguerreotype case and the front page of the catalog from the 1979 Parke Bernet sale. The Christie's sale occurred in the late 1990s and the collector received the lock of hair as it was described from the 1979 Sotheby Parke Bernet sale. He, in turn, removed and divided the strands from the daguerreotype case. MARY TODD LINCOLN believed that one's home and dress should reflect one's status at the time. In Springfield she created a modest home. However, at the White House as her status changed, so did her dress and her home's appearance - regardless of the expense. As First Lady, her ball gowns, jewelry and the dressing of her hair were extravagant. The press reported that in 1861 she spent $650 on mantillas adorning her hair. The February 5, 1862 "Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper" reported: "She was attired in a lustrous white satin robe with a train a yard in length, trimmed with one deep flounce of the richest black chantilly lace...Mrs. Lincoln possesses that rare beauty which rendered the Empress of the French so celebrated as a handsome woman." These strands of Mary Lincoln's hair were part of the "Biggest Famous Hair Collection" listed in The Guinness 1999 Book of Records. Fine condition.

SEE IF DOCUMENT 250621 IS FOR SALE RIGHT NOW!!

This document was available for sale in a previous auction. It may or may not be currently available for sale. It is also highly likely that we have more of this personality available for sale either in our archives or on our direct purchase website www.historyforsale.com.

For direct purchase information, call 1-800-GALLERY (1-800-425-5379) Mon-Fri, 8am-5pm Pacific Time or email inquires to sales@galleryofhistory.com. RIGHT NOW YOU CAN BID ON A SIMILAR ITEM IN OUR CURRENT AUCTION!

Autograph Archive Index