Before discarding that dusty box of old photos at your neighborhood antique shop, a little bit of due diligence might be a step that pays off big time for you.
In Fresno, California, one man's double-take at a 19th-century photograph containing American outlaw Billy the Kid could earn him a whopping $5 million, a major windfall considering he paid just $2 for it at an antique shop.
The photo was authenticated earlier this month by numismatics firm Kagin's Inc., which confirmed that the 4-by-5-inch tintype depicts the legendary frontiersman cemented in American folklore for his ruffian reputation and legendary killing of an alleged 21 people during New Mexico's Lincoln County War (the state's Tourism Department puts the actual number at 9).
Kagin's senior numismatist explained the process for authenticating the photo:
When we first saw the photograph, we were understandably skeptical – an original Billy the Kid photo is the Holy Grail of Western AmericanaWe had to be certain that we could answer and verify where, when, how and why this photograph was taken. Simple resemblance is not enough in a case like this – a team of experts had to be assembled to address each and every detail in the photo to insure that nothing was out of place. After more than a year of methodical study including my own inspection of the site, there is now overwhelming evidence of the image’s authenticity.
In the photo, Billy the Kid, thought to have been born Henry McCarty, is seen together with several members of his gang, the Regulators, attending what may have been a wedding. The photo, dated to the summer of 1878, shows the outlaws participating in a game of croquet.
Just one other photo containing Billy the Kid has been authenticated to date, a 2-inch-by-3-inch, 1880 tintype from Fort Sumner that sold at auction for $2.3 million in 2010, according to Kagin's.
Despite Billy the Kid's rough description in American history, he was also reportedly an intelligent boy with deep interests in literature, music and dancing. He avoided liquor and smoking, spoke fluent Spanish and had close ties with many in New Mexico's Lincoln County prior to the eruption of violence over rival interests in the cattle and dry goods markets.
He received his famous moniker from the Las Vegas Gazette in 1880 and became a tabloid sensation throughout the United States. Just a year later, after escaping prison in Lincoln County, Billy the Kid was tracked down and killed by Sheriff Pat Garrett.
“The historical importance of a photograph of Billy the Kid alongside known members of his gang and prominent Lincoln County citizens is incalculable – this is perhaps the single most compelling piece of Western Americana that we have ever seen,” said Dr. Donald Kagin, president of Kagan's Inc.
A two-hour documentary covering the process of authenticating the photo, narrated by Kevin Costner, airs Sunday night at 9 on the National Geographic Channel.