Online auction to include timeless NYC items from the 20th century

December 11, 2023

Bob Dylan’s first album master reels. Photo courtesy of Guernsey’s

New York’s Guernsey’s auction house on Thursday will host “Iconic Items From The 20th Century,” an online auction selling off rare items connected to some of the century’s most influential figures. Among the treasures up for grabs are the original master tapes of Bob Dylan’s first album and items intertwined with the history of NYC, including a signed Yankees ticket stub from the 1956 World Series and an original 1915 Coney Island carousel horse. Explore more of the legendary items Guernsey’s has to offer below.

While all of the items included in the auction are legendary in their own right, one of the most esteemed items is the original master tapes of Bob Dylan’s first self-titled album, recorded at Manhattan’s Columbia Studios and released in 1962. The master tapes of the 13-track album, which contains songs like “Highway 51,” “Song to Woody,” and “Man of Constant Sorrow,” also feature outtakes, unreleased songs, and conversations between Dylan and his producer John Hammond.

Stephen Handschu found the tapes when he moved into a studio apartment in the East Village in the mid-1960s; the tapes will have a starting bid of $200,000. Handschu had wanted to listen to the tapes, but the size of the reels made it difficult to find the right technology to hear them play.

Finally, after many years of them sitting unused, Handschu confirmed the tapes’ contents and heard Dylan’s songs and conversations with his producer after each take, according to the New York Times.

Another highlight of the auction lot includes a signed ticket stub from the 1956 World Series, won by the Yankees. The stub features signatures from baseball legends Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, and other team members.

The auction contains several other standout items tied to NYC’s history, including an original Coney Island Carousel horse hand-carved at Charles Carmel’s Ocean Parkway workshop in 1915. The horse spun on Coney Island’s world-famous carousel for 25 years before it was auctioned off during the Great Depression to a buyer in Bogota, Colombia.

The horse spun for young children in the South American city for decades until it was dismantled in the 1980s and Guernsey’s was able to acquire it thanks to a tip from an American visiting the city on business.

Other featured items include Elvis Presley’s 6th grade report card, President John F. Kennedy’s moon note, and the only known factory-sealed A0000001 copy of the Beatles’ White Album in existence.