A pair of leg irons that are believed to have been used on abolitionist John Brown are up for sale at Heritage Auctions.
 Brown's bungled revolt was one of the flash points that triggered the US civil war |
The shackles are estimated to sell for $10,000-15,000, as part of the June 22-23 Americana and Political Signature Auction in Dallas.
John Brown is famed for his botched raid on a United States arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Viriginia in 1859, the weapons from which he planned to use to launch an armed slave revolt.
Defeated by Colonel Robert E Lee, Brown was executed for treason. His death is believed to have been one of the flash points that triggered the US civil war.
The leg irons were consigned by John Boling of Idaho, whose great-great-great-grandfather Hezekiah Atwood Jr obtained them shortly after Brown's execution.
Boling hopes the shackles will go on public display, explaining to the Miami Herald: "We believe that history should be learned and understood."
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