We all value things differently. Some people can't understand how a Pokémon card can sell for a million pounds, while others can't understand how a painting by Jean-Michel Basquiat can sell for tens of millions.
The value of an item is dictated by the amount that someone is willing to pay. We've learned over the years that items connected to celebrities can sell for a lot, no matter how bizarre the connection is.
See also: Worth Millions: Behind the Appeal of Celebrity Memorabilia
10. George Washington's hair
Collecting hair is a tradition that goes back for centuries. Nowadays, people often ask celebrities for a selfie, ten years ago, people asked celebrities for their autographs. Hundreds of years ago, people asked celebrities for a snip of their hair. Even in the '60s, when rock stars such as Mick Jagger and Paul McCartney received fan mail, they sometimes got a request for hair strands along with their autograph.
See also: The Fascinating Market for Celebrity Hair
George Washington is one of many notable historical names whose hair is coveted on the auction market. The key to authenticating hair strands is by looking at the provenance. For instance, hair strands that belonged to Elvis Presley have been offered at auction by his hairdresser, Homer Gilleland, and have a pretty strong provenance.
Celebrity hair strands are often presented elegantly, whether in custom-made boxes with pictures of the celebrity or, in this case, set in a fancy ring with pearls. George Washington's set of hair was sold by Sotheby's in 2016 for $30,000.
9. John Lennon's signed album to Mark David Chapman
There's nothing weird about a signed album, one may think. This, however, is more than just a signed album. Many would consider it one of the most incredible music memorabilia items in the world, due to the fact that John Lennon signed it just five hours before he died, and that he signed it to his soon-to-be killer. At approximately 5 pm on 8 December 1980, Lennon left his home at The Dakota in New York for a recording session. Just outside his home, he met someone who asked for an autograph. The person had Lennon's latest album, Double Fantasy, with him. Lennon signed the album and left. Five hours later, at 10:55 pm, Lennon returned to The Dakota and walked through the archway of the building, where he got shot four times at close range. The shooter was Mark David Chapman, the man who had the Double Fantasy album signed.
See also: The Beatles Autographs: History, Rarity, and Value
Any John Lennon-signed copy of Double Fantasy is scarce since the album was released in November 1980, less than a month before he died. They usually sell in the $30,000 range. This particularly signed copy is, for obvious reasons, much more valuable, and was sold by Goldin in 2020 for $900,000.
8. Winston Churchill's false teeth
Hair strands may seem very bizarre, but how about teeth? Winston Churchill was voted number 1 in BBC's 100 Greatest Britons list, but how big is the interest in owning such an intimate item?
The Prime Minister was born with a natural lisp and wore false teeth to correct his speech defect. The teeth were made by a dental technician named Derek Cudlipp, who later in life received a knighthood from Churchill. The set of teeth was saved for many years and was offered at auction for the first time in 2010 when a small UK-based auctioneer sold them for £15,200. A year later, in 2011, they were sold by Bonhams for £19,200.
See also: Lost Painting by Churchill Found at Sea
7. Queen Victoria's underwear
Royal memorabilia and collectibles are very popular with people all over the world. By a milestone, British royal collectibles are the most sought-after. The less valuable items are produced in high quantities, while the more valuable items are much more rare and often items with a direct connection to the royals. These can be everything from a signed photograph by Queen Elizabeth II to a piece of cake (well-preserved, of course) from King Charles III and Princess Diana's wedding.
And then, there's Queen Victoria's underwear. Queen Victoria ruled the United Kingdom, while also being the Empress of India, from 1837 to 1901, which makes her one of the longest-reigning monarchs in history. Beneath her beautiful clothes, she wore, like all of us, underwear. It is seldom that such items are being sold to the public, especially when they have royal provenance. But this time, collectors got the opportunity to bid on custom-made underwear with a beautiful embroidered monogram featuring the initials 'VR' ('Victoria Regina'). The underwear was sold by auctioneer Richard Edmonds in 2015 for £12,000.
6. Truman Capote's ashes
As the writer of masterpieces like Breakfast at Tiffany's and In Cold Blood, Truman Capote was one of the world's most acclaimed living authors until his death in 1984. In his testament, he asked for his ashes to be given to his dear friends, the legendary Tonight Show presenter Johnny Carson and his wife Joanne. The ashes were kept in a beautiful hand-carved Japanese wooden box and displayed at the Carson estate for many years. Interestingly, the box and the ashes were once stolen but later returned to the Carsons.
Johnny Carson passed away in 2005 and Joanne in 2015, and their family sold the couple's property in 2016 through Julien's Auctions. The most remarkable lot was arguably Truman Capote's ashes, which were sold for $43,750, exceeding its estimate of $2,000.
5. William Shatner's kidney stone
Known for portraying Captain Kirk in Star Trek, actor William Shatner enters this top 10 list on unique items as he sold one of his kidney stones a couple of years ago for a charitable cause.
"The kidney stone was so big," Shatner said, "you'd want to wear it on your finger." Since the kidney stone was sold directly from Shatner, there is no doubt about the authenticity. The selling price ended at $25,000 when it was sold in 2006 via Julien's Auctions.
4. John Lennon's toilet
Everything connected to The Beatles, and John Lennon in particular, is highly sought-after by collectors – apparently, even a toilet.
From 1969 to 1971, John Lennon and his wife, Yoko Ono, lived in their beautiful estate of Tittenhurst Park in Berkshire. The home was bought for £150,000 and had a "very, very fancy" toilet, at least if you ask the auctioneer who sold the toilet nearly 40 years after Lennon gave it to his builder. According to the builder, Lennon told him "to use it as a plant pot" after he installed a new toilet. The builder didn't use it as a plant but rather kept it as a collectible over the years. When the toilet found its way to the auction block, it was estimated to sell in the £1,500 range, but it sold for £9,500 in 2010 by The Beatles Shop.
See also: John Lennon's $10 Million Patek Philippe Watch Found After 43 Years
3. Lee Harvey Oswald's coffin
John Wilkes Booth, Mark David Chapman, James Earl Ray, and Lee Harvey Oswald have two things in common – they have three names, and they killed some of the most prominent figures in modern history: Abraham Lincoln, John Lennon, Martin Luther King, and John F. Kennedy. Given the high profile of their victims, the four killers will forever be known, and collectors (mainly Americans) have found an interest in collecting items related to them simply because their association with the famous people they killed. The high interest in JFK's killer, Lee Harvey Oswald, was proven when an interesting item came to auction.
To put a rest to the conspiracy theories about Lee Harvey Oswald's body not being buried, his family approved his coffin to be dug up, and it was later confirmed and identified through dental records that it was indeed his body that was buried. The original coffin was replaced with a new one and later buried in the Rose Hill Memorial Burial Park in Fort Worth, Texas.
The sale of the original coffin gained a lot of media attention and crushed all expectations when it was sold for $87,000 in 2010 by Nate D. Sanders.
2. Ronald Reagan's blood
John F. Kennedy's assassination in 1963 is well known, but not many people are aware that Ronald Reagan could have fallen to the same fate. The attempted assassination of U.S. President Ronald Reagan took place on 30 March 1981, when the president was shot and seriously wounded after a speech held in Washington, D.C. The President was taken to the George Washington University Hospital and was, according to reports, close to death. Blood tests were taken, and someone stole a stoppered glass vial with Reagan's blood in it.
It is not entirely known how the blood left the hospital and ended up in the hands of a collector. Still, the blood was also accompanied by a hospital document about their famous patient. The sale gained a lot of attention, with critics saying that it shouldn't be legal to sell such property.
This glass vial was sold via an American auction house in 2012 for $3,550, and was later, in the same year, resold by PFC Auctions, who ended the auction after receiving bids over $30,000. The seller decided to donate the blood to the Reagan Presidential Foundation.
1. Napoleon's penis
What is weirder than selling hair, teeth, ashes, kidney stones, toilets, and blood? The answer might be genitalia.
French emperor Napoleon conquered many countries and, over the years, has become one of the most well-known figures in the history of humanity. Today, everything connected to him is of high interest to collectors worldwide, including his penis.
In 1815, after losing the Battle of Waterloo, Napoleon was exiled to Saint Helena, where he died in 1821. The story goes that after Napoleon passed away, his penis was amputated during an autopsy, performed by Napoleon's physician, François Carlo Antommarchi. The reason why the physician cut off the penis is not entirely known, but rumours are that Antommarchi was bribed to cut it off as an act of revenge on behalf of one of Napoleon's chaplains. The penis was later smuggled into Napoleon's home city of Corsica, and over the years became a collectible, changing owners several times.
See also: Why is Napoleon So Popular at Auction?
In 1924, it was purchased by the legendary bookseller A. S. W. Rosenbach, who later put it on display at an exhibition in New York. The penis changed owners multiple times and was subsequently sold at auction in 1977. The purchase price was $3,000, which is approximately equivalent to $15,200 in 2023. The buyer was an artefact collector named John K. Lattimer, who passed away in 2007. After Lattimer's passing, the penis was inherited by his daughter, who, according to reports, is still the current owner.
See also: Napoleon's Famous Hat Sets a New Auction Record
It's unknown how the penis looks today, but one visitor from the 1927 New York exhibition described it as a "maltreated strip of buckskin shoelace." Others have described it as a "piece of leather or a shrivelled eel." One thing, however, is clear – the value of Napoleon's penis has increased dramatically since it last changed owners in 1977. It isn't easy to put a price tag, but the bizarreness of the item and its incredible history make it truly unique as a collectible.
Bonus: Albert Einstein's brain
Many weird collectibles could be included in this list. Hair strands of multiple celebrities have sold at auction over the years, and the same goes for underwear, ashes, and even body parts. Albert Einstein's brain is a very significant collectible that has brought much controversy over the years. A few hours after Einstein died in 1955, his brain was taken out of his head. The primary purpose was for scientific research, as there were speculations that Einstein's brain was different from others. The autopsy was conducted by the American pathologist Thomas Stoltz Harvey, who kept the 1.2 kg brain after he had dissected it into several pieces. Fast forward to 1978, the brain was rediscovered in Harvey's possession by journalist Steven Levy, who noted that the brain was well-preserved.
See also: Albert Einstein's Peace Formula Heads To Auction
In 2013, the Mütter Museum in Philadelphia purchased 46 small portions of Einstein's brain that are now on display. No part of the brain has ever sold at auction, hence Einstein's brain not entering the list of Top 10 Weirdest Collectibles Ever Sold. But when, or rather if, it sells, it will surely enter the list.
