Yesterday, the Carlyle Group‘s CEO bought a copy of the first newspaper printing of the U.S. Declaration of Independence for a record-breaking $632,500 at an auction at the Robert A. Siegel Galleries in NYC. David Rubenstein, co-founder and co-CEO of the private equity powerhouse, amalgamated his already impressive collection of historical documents for public view with yet another revolutionary relic.
According to Seth Kaller, an expert and dealer of said documents, the patriotic patron broke auction records for historic newspapers with his generous bid. “He purchases these and then is putting them on permanent loan at important institutions so that more people can see them,” said Christopher Ullman, Carlyle spokesman. “When he dies, he’ll make them permanent.”
Luckily, Rubenstein’s coveted collection is on loan to U.S. institutions, such as the Oval Office, National Archives and Library of Congress. His reserve includes a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation, a 1927 copy of the Magna Carta and the first map of the country after declaring independence.
Kaller assured that his latest purchase maintains its practically impeccable 1776 conditions, with no fading and very little toning.
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