President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963. Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested as a suspect but was slain two days later by nightclub owner Jack Ruby. Oswald’s body was briefly exhumed in 1981 in the course of the long drawn investigation into the sensational assassination. A Texas funeral home owner had swapped his simple wooden coffin for a new one. The original coffin was put on the auction block late last month.
Lee Harvey Oswald’s original coffin was bought by an anonymous bidder for over $87,000. Nate D Sanders Auctions in Santa Monica were handling the auctions. They were of the opinion that anything connected to the JFK assassination always attracts bidders and goes for a high price. The identity of the bidder was not known but the auction house assured that the buyer of the coffin might speak publicly very soon.
The coffin has been damaged by the water that seeped in. the metal ornamentation has rusted and part of the coffin including its roof has rotted and the satin lining has disintegrated. Funeral home owner Allen Baumgardner had held onto the coffin since Oswald’s body was dug up in 1981 in an effort to put to rest conspiracy theories that he really wasn’t buried in his grave.
Via: msnbc.msn