Maximilian's Saddle Auctioned Off for 200,000 Dollars

From my Austrian correspondent in Los Angeles:

"A fabulous saddle made for the last Emperor of Mexico, Maximilian I sold at auction on January 30, 2010. The stunning Imperial saddle, consigned by the heirs of the Julius Skilton family who acquired it shortly after Maximilian's execution by the forces of Benito Juarez in 1864, was lavishly adorned with multiple imperial crests and sold for a record setting $200,000 (estimate $100,000 - $150,000) propelled by animated bidding from the audience and all six telephone lines."

Watch the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=by583D7NBwc
Madam Mayo says: This 3 minute video is a hoot. The first two minutes are a bit boring, then-- just when I was tempted to turn it off-- it gets wild. At the end of the video you'll see a close up of the saddle.

P.S. Read my blog post with more information about this saddle and its previous owner.

Dr. Julius Augustus Skilton and Maximilian's Portrait and Saddle

A fascinating new website now listed on my Maximilian page's links: Maximilian I Emperor of Mexico. It's about the American surgeon Dr. Julius Augustus Skilton and the upcoming auction of two items that have been handed down in his family: Maximilian's portrait and a Mexican saddle first given to Maximilian, then to Father Fischer (one of Maximilian's closest advisors) and then to Dr Skilton. You can see pictures and read all about the history of these items here. Dr Skilton was actually a Juarista. According to the website, after the U.S. Civil War, he "traveled on assignment for the New York Herald to Mexico. He is reported to have fled Mexico as he was sympathetic to the Juarez cause. In 1867 he returned to Mexico as Medical Officer and part of the escort of the Juarez family. He was also asked by the Mexican government [then the Republic under President Juarez] to exhume an examine the body of Maximilian before it was delivered to the Austrian Navy for its return to Austria." (For more about that horror show, see "La muerte del Emperador Maximiliano" por Dr. Szender Ede.) Later, in the 1870s, Dr. Skilton served as U.S. Consul General in Mexico. For anyone who wants to dig deeper, Dr. Skilton's papers are in the Rare and Manuscript Collections at the Carl A. Kroch Library at Cornell University and also the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

More anon.