3

Lot 3:Czar Alexander II Assassination Item

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:150.00 USD Estimated At:250.00 - 500.00 USD
Lot    3:Czar Alexander II Assassination Item
<b>Autographs</b><hr><b>(ALEXANDER II), Czar of Russia.</b>
c. 1888, a tiny piece of wood taken from the carriage destroyed in the assassination of Czar Alexander II on March 1, 1881, Very Fine. Attached to a small card (3.25” x 4.25) with the following notation: “Brought from Royal Stables, St. Petersburg, December 1888. Piece of carriage destroyed Mar. 1st. 1881 when the Czar Alex II of Russia was assassinated. 1st dynamite bomb wrecked carriage & killed two Cossacks (?), the Czar was only wounded in the hand. The second bomb killed him, the (?) & a boy. 4 men & 2 women hanged for the crime.” A gruesome, one-of-a-kind relic.

Alexander was the target of numerous assassination attempts. The final, successful attempt was carried out by at least eight conspirators. As mentioned above, their first bomb failed to kill the Czar, instead missing his carriage and taking out some of the Cossack escorts. Alexander insisted on leaving the carriage and checking the condition of his injured men. While doing so, another terrorist lobbed the bomb that killed Alexander instantly. Happily, the terrorist was killed by his own bomb, as well.