Thirteenth Amendment and Emancipation Proclamation Sold for $18m 

Two rare Lincoln-signed copies of the Thirteenth Amendment and Emancipation Proclamation have set new records for the documents at auction at Sotheby's New York. 

Both documents were bought by Kenneth Griffin, founder and CEO of Citadel, who intends to loan the documents to a U.S. institution. The congressional copy of the Thirteenth Amendment achieved an above-estimate $13.7 million, more than five times the previous auction record for a Thirteenth Amendment, while the Emancipation Proclamation went for $4.4m.

The congressional copy of the Thirteenth Amendment is one of only 15 recorded manuscript copies signed by Lincoln, and one of just nine signed by Lincoln alongside the senators and congressmen who passed it for ratification by the states. Only four of these are in private hands, and of those four, this copy bears the most signatures of the supporting legislators of any other known.

The Emancipation Proclamation is one of 48 limited edition copies produced to be sold - for the sum of $10 each - to benefit the Sanitary Commission which provided medical care and support for Union soldiers. Of the 48 limited edition copies printed for this purpose, only 27, including this copy, are known to survive.

“The Emancipation Proclamation and the 13th Amendment marked a profound step forward, abolishing the scourge of slavery and advancing the ideal that all people are created equal," said Kenneth Griffin. "As America approaches its 250th anniversary, we all have a part to play to strengthen and renew the promise of our nation. Each generation must experience the sacred documents of our democracy, to learn from them and be inspired to carry our country forward."