New York – In April 1996, two years after the death of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, a public auction of the former US First Lady’s personal belongings triggered extraordinary global interest, with collectors and admirers competing for items ranging from everyday objects to historic jewellery.
The sale, held at Sotheby’s in New York, featured 1,195 lots from Onassis’s Manhattan apartment, where she had lived since 1964. Demand was so high that 100,000 copies of the auction catalogue were printed, with thousands of buyers entering a lottery for the chance to view the items before the sale.
Priced at $90 for a hardcover edition, the 584-page catalogue itself became a collector’s item, offering a detailed glimpse into the private world of one of America’s most iconic figures.
“For a lot of people, the catalogue is the closest they’re going to come to the sale,” said Newsweek culture editor Cathleen McGuigan at the time. “This is the ultimate Jackie document.”
The auction revealed rarely seen aspects of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis’s life, including photographs of her Fifth Avenue apartment described by Sotheby’s executives as both “elegant” and “warm,” filled with personal mementos accumulated over decades.
Much of the collection reflected her life following the assassination of President John F Kennedy in 1963. Seeking privacy, she moved to a 15-room penthouse overlooking Central Park in 1964, a home she cherished for the rest of her life.
She lived in various residences over the years, including a Greek island home with her second husband Aristotle Onassis, but always returned to her New York apartment, where she eventually died. The property itself was later sold for $9.5 million.
Experts noted that the collection largely consisted of items not retained by her children or the Kennedy Presidential Library, described as the “leftovers” of her estate.
Objects up for sale ranged from modest household items to highly valuable personal possessions. Among them were wire baskets valued at $30, a French school textbook with handwritten sketches, and a black enamel cigarette lighter.
One of the most valuable items was her 40-carat diamond engagement ring from Aristotle Onassis, which sold for $2.6 million. An antique desk used by President Kennedy during key historical moments fetched $1.3 million.
Even seemingly modest items drew extraordinary prices. A string of imitation pearls famously worn in a 1962 photograph sold for more than $200,000, far exceeding expectations.
Over four days of bidding, the auction raised $34.5 million in total, with every item sold. Sotheby’s had initially estimated earnings of around $4.6 million, but the final results far exceeded expectations.
“There was no precedent for this level of interest,” reported BBC correspondent Sam Jaffa. “Never in their wildest dreams could anyone at Sotheby’s have imagined the success of this sale.”
High-profile buyers included actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, then married to Kennedy’s niece Maria Shriver. He purchased President Kennedy’s golf clubs and other memorabilia, joining a wave of bidders drawn by the historical and emotional significance of the collection.
The auction underscored the enduring public fascination with Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis—not only as a First Lady, but as a cultural icon whose personal style and private life continue to captivate decades later.