The estate of civil rights activist Rosa Parks could soon be up for sale, causing civil rights collectors and historians potential cause for celebration.
In Alabama in 1955, Rosa Parks refused to obey bus driver James Blake's order that she give up her seat to make room for a white passenger.
It was a decision that brought the civil rights movement great attention but also caused Parks to lose her job as a seamstress.
Today, six years after Parks's death, $10m-worth of collectibles including the hat she wore on the historic bus trip, as well as clothes and medals, are in the hands of New York auction house Guernsey's.
We expect these civil rights collectibles to receive huge attention when they are finally sold.
But they are currently being overshadowed by a six-page, first person account discovered in the collection, written by Parks, of a "near rape" by a white neighbour.
 The bus on which Rosa Parks remained seated |
Said by some to be a true account of Parks's own experiences, while others state it is simply one of her several pieces of creative writing, the document has sparked huge interest.
However, collectors may yet be disappointed, as Guernsey's is hoping to find an organisation, such as a museum or university, to buy the collection in its entirety.
"There hasn't been a group that didn't desperately want it but had to face the reality whether they could afford it," said Guernsey's president Arlan Ettinger.
One item that won't be for auction is the historic bus, which resides at the Henry Ford Museum in Michigan.
Paul Fraser Collectibles will keep you updated on the latest developments.
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