JFK Assassination Window Auctioned Off

The specter of the JFK assassination is still firmly entrenched in the American consciousness. The latest evidence of this comes from eBay, which late last week auctioned off what was advertised as the window that was the sniper perch of Lee Harvey Oswald, identified as the sole killer of the popular president 44 years ago. 

The starting price for the window was $100,000, and bidding went through the roof rather quickly. A total of 32 bids were later disallowed, either because they were not credible (one promised to pay $17 million) or because the bidder didn't meet certain seller-set qualifications. On top of all that, the winning bidder didn't have the money. 

The window was offered by Caruth Byrd, who owns the window courtesy of his father, D. Harold Byrd, who owned the Texas School Book Depository building from which Oswald fired the fatal shots. The elder Byrd ordered the window removed the building and kept it in his home until he died in 1986. His family later lent it to The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. The museum returned the window to Caruth Byrd, who finally decided to sell it. 

So now that the auction has finished and the "winning" bidder is out of the picture, the seller is left to sort through a handful of qualified bidders. That could take a few days, eBay officials say.