Story at a glance
- A group of cryptocurrency investors are looking to purchase a rare copy of the U.S. Constitution up for auction this week.
- The group, known as Constitution DAO (decentralized autonomous organization), said it has pooled around $40 million and is seeking a partner to display it.
- “The eventual home must have the expertise to properly house, store, and maintain the artifact,” the group notes on its website.
A group of cryptocurrency investors are looking to purchase a rare copy of the U.S. Constitution up for auction at Sotheby’s on Thursday.
The group, known as Constitution DAO (decentralized autonomous organization), said it has pooled around $40 million and is seeking a partner to display “one of thirteen surviving copies of the Official Edition from the Constitutional Convention.”
“The eventual home must have the expertise to properly house, store, and maintain the artifact,” the group notes on its website.
“Additionally, the community has expressed strong preferences for institutions that are free to the public and willing to cover the costs associated with housing the document,” they added.
CNN reported that DAO investors have primarily been using Ethereum, one of the world’s most valuable cryptocurrencies. The outlet noted that Sotheby’s began accepting cryptocurrency earlier this year during its sale of a work by the artist Banksy.
Sotheby’s estimates the document will sell for somewhere between $15 and $20 million Thursday evening.
America is changing faster than ever! Add Changing America to your Facebook or Twitter feed to stay on top of the news.
Selby Kiffer, an international senior specialist in Sotheby’s Books and Manuscripts Department, told The Associated Press in September he’s dealt with this particular document before, when in 1988 it sold for $165,000, noting “it’s just as exciting, if not a little bit more exciting, the second time around.”
“It would have belonged to either a member of the Continental Congress or to one of the delegates to the Continental Convention,” Kiffer said. “Those were the only people who had access to this first printing. Your eye is immediately drawn to that first line, ‘We the people of the United States.’”
READ MORE STORIES FROM CHANGING AMERICA
‘HAMILTON’ STAR LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA FIRES BACK AT CANCEL CULTURE
WAR ERUPTS OVER NEW MARVEL BLOCKBUSTER’S GAY SUPERHERO
‘PARKS AND RECREATION’ ACTOR CHARGED WITH VANDALIZING GEORGE FLOYD STATUE
CRIMINAL CHARGES NOT OUT OF THE QUESTION IN FATAL SHOOTING ON MOVIE SET, DA SAYS
DAVE CHAPPELLE RELEASES NEW STANDUP VIDEO REFUSING TO APOLOGIZE FOR TRANS CONTROVERSY
changing america copyright.
