The jelly bean jar. Nancy’s pearls. An autographed chunk of the Berlin Wall. For history buffs and collectors looking forward to next month’s auction of items from the Bel Air, California, home of former President Ronald Reagan, the list of more than 700 pieces of historic and personal memorabilia about to go up for sale is almost too good to be true.
Among the items included in the Christie’s auction, which a spokeswoman said were “thoroughly vetted” by the firm and trustees of the Reagan estate, are a set of accessories from Reagan’s desk, including a jar of jelly beans, a silver blotter and a bronze plaque with the words, “There is no limit to what a man can do or where he can go if he doesn’t mind who gets the credit.” The six-piece desk set is estimated to fetch $1,000 to $2,000, but the price could go far higher.
Another stellar piece is expected to be a 25-inch chunk of the former Berlin Wall, signed by Reagan with a black felt-tip pen. The piece, evocative of Reagan’s 1987 exhortation to the Soviet premier, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall,” carries a $10,000 to $20,000 estimate. An 1805 set of “The Wealth of Nations” by Adam Smith is estimated at $800 to $1,200; the volumes will carry a bookplate denoting their provenance from Reagan’s personal library.
Also included in the collection are gifts from people such as former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher — a silver cup inscribed “with love from Margaret and Denis Thatcher,” estimated at $1,000 to $2,000 — and a number of items from Frank and Barbara Sinatra, including two paintings by the noted crooner and actor.
For those seeking a truly personal remembrance, $2,500 to $3,500 is the estimate on a page of pencil sketches, or doodles, made by Reagan on White House stationery and signed in pencil. A football with Reagan’s signature and “Win One for The Gipper,” his memorable line from 1940’s “Knute Rockne, All American,” is estimated to fetch $5,000 to $10,000.
Other items include purses and jewelry owned by Nancy Davis Reagan, who died on March 6 at age 94, as well as artwork including several paintings by American primitive artist Anna Mary Robertson, better known as Grandma Moses. One 1953 painting, “A Gay Time,” is estimated to command $15,000 to $25,000.
The New York City auction also offers insight into the personal reading habits of the Reagans. Many of the 27 lots of books and periodicals are volumes from the Limited Editions Club, an upscale alternative of the Book of the Month Club, which reprinted classics in editions often featuring illustrations from noted contemporary artists. Collections of Victor Hugo, Fyodor Dostoevsky, William Makepeace Thackeray and William Shakespeare are included. A 10-volume lot of theological books includes a five-volume 1935 edition of the King James version of the Bible.
Estimates are based on market values for the items “without the provenance being taken into account,” the Christie’s spokeswoman said.
“Given the tremendous public affection for President and Mrs. Reagan and the timely nature of this sale, Christie’s does expect there will be active competitive bidding for some of the more iconic items, which may yield final prices well in excess of their estimates,” she said.
Presidential market
Such excesses are not uncommon for souvenirs of a White House occupant. After his death in 1945, the stamp collection of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, estimated to bring $80,000 at auction, “brought many times that amount,” the Chicago Tribune noted in 1988. The special tweezers FDR used to handle stamps, called tongs, sold for $400, the report said.
A 43-year dealer in presidential memorabilia agreed that the array of Reaganalia could drive a vigorous sale, which is expected to bring in at least $2 million.
“I would say that in general, Ronald Reagan is probably very close to [President] John F. Kennedy as the most-collected president, probably No. 2 on the hit parade,” said Steve Ferber, co-owner of collectibles firm Lori Ferber Inc. in Scottsdale, Arizona. “I would expect a lot of interest in items of this type. I wouldn’t be surprised if they went for far greater than that [estimate].”
Proceeds of the auction will go to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation in Simi Valley, California, which operates the Reagan Presidential Library and Museum on a hill overlooking Southern California. Melissa Giller, the foundation’s chief marketing officer, said this was the first time the group had been involved in an auction of Reagan items.
“There is a huge fascination with and a huge love for President and Mrs. Reagan, and a huge interest from people worldwide to have a piece of them,” Ms. Giller said. “This auction really spans a lot of items, from furniture to photos to gifts. There’s something for all different types of collectors.”
Ms. Giller said the library has retained “items of historical significance” from the Reagans’ home, “and a lot of them will be going on display. The items being auctioned are still very significant because they were kept by the Reagans in their home.”
The Sinatra items, highlighted by a marine chronometer in a fitted, brass-mounted mahogany box with a plaque reading, “Good morning, Mr. President,” are among the most intimate, given the relationship the two couples shared, Ms. Giller said.
“They had a very close relationship. They were very good friends,” she said. “Mrs. Reagan did a book and a song, ’To Love a Child,’ raise funds for the Foster Grandparents program, and Sinatra came on stage and sang it with her.”
Ms. Giller said those buying the Sinatra-related items were “not just collecting an item from the Reagan estate, but insight into Sinatra and the relationship, too.”
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