History of Great Britain for sale!

[Lady's Human]

The Perot foundation is auctioning off one of only 17 original copies of the Magna Carta ! :eek:

They might as well auction off the Beefeaters, the Tower of London, and HMS Victory.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/25/nyregion/25magna.html?hp

[DrKym]

does this really surprise you hon?

[Catty1]

And what will they do with the money????

[ChrisH]

It's okay, that's only a 1297 copy. :D



The copy on sale, dating from 1297, was bought by Ross F Perot in 1984 and is the only one in private ownership.

King John sealed the original Magna Carta in 1215, outlawing imprisonment and the seizure of property without due legal process, including trial by jury. The Perot 1297 manuscript, bearing the seal of King Edward I, is due to go on auction in December.

Only four copies dating to the 1215 signing of the Magna Carta are believed to have survived, and all of them are in England.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/world/americas/7014220.stm

[Killearn Kitties]

That will be a very nice return on their investment if it does fetch $20-30m. Were you thinking of putting in a bid yourself LH??? I thought it might have added interest for you, since this copy was owned by the Earl of Cardigan. :D

[Lady's Human]

I just don't have the money to spare at the moment, though it would look good on the wall.

[Lady's Human]

I just have a basic objection to historical documents being put up for bid. They should be in museums, not in private collections.

[Killearn Kitties]

I assumed that he was hoping that the National Archives would buy it, instead of him giving it to them on permanent loan. Do you know if he has explored that possibility? I absolutely agree with you that it should be held in trust by a national collection.