RR Auction in Boston auctioned off 13 previously unpublished negatives of photos snapped at the wedding of John F. Kennedy to Jacqueline Bouvier. They were taken by freelance photographer Frank Ataman who was hired as a back-up photographer for the high society event.
An un-named doctor from Las Vegas cast the winning bid for the negatives at $34,073 on Wednesday.
The negatives, along with 5 x 4 printouts of each image, were only discovered in the darkroom of Aurthur C. Borgess, another photographer, after he passed away in 1993. According to Borgess' heir, Ruth B. Costa, the negatives may have been given to her father by Ataman, although they have no written documentation of how exactly they came to be in his possession.
The images on the negatives encapture the very beginning of the bygone era of Camelot in the White House that Jackie popularized after President Kennedy's assassination, and still evoke sentimental emotions of the seemingly fairy tale romance and presidency. According to the official description of the online auction which was put up by RR Auction on Sept. 26 the negatives were kept in their original folder and were in "fine condition."
"Each negative measures 3.75 x 5, four feature the newlywed couple, two show the entire wedding party, and the remainder show the cake, reception, and wedding attendees," the description stated.
Although Ataman's photos have never been seen by the public before, official photographs from the wedding were published in LIFE magazine and introduced the couple to the nation. At the time, Kennedy was serving his first year as Massachusetts state senator. It would be another seven years before he would be elected as President of the United States.
The auction for the negatives began with a starting bid of $200 and closed on Oct. 15.
The RR Auction has been in business for almost four decades and has handled many authentic and historically significant items for auction from around the world, including a 1963 convertible that belonged to President Kennedy which sold for $318,000; the hand-notated manuscript for Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote, $300,000; and Bonnie and Clyde's guns, $500,000.
