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AuctionsJun 26, 2017
Al Capone’s Diamond Pocket Watch Sells for $84K
It more than tripled its pre-sale estimate at RR Auction’s “Gangsters, Outlaws and Lawmen” sale, while a ring Clyde gave to Bonnie sold for $25,000.
This diamond and platinum pocket watch once owned by infamous gangster Al Capone was the top lot in RR Auction’s “Gangsters, Outlaws and Lawmen” sale, selling for $84,375.
Boston--A diamond and platinum pocket watch once owned by Scarface himself topped a recent auction of the possessions of infamous American gangsters, going for $84,375.
The diamond-studded piece led Boston-based RR Auction’s “Gangsters, Outlaws and Lawmen” sale on Saturday, selling for more than three times its $25,000 pre-sale estimate. The winning bidder has not yet been identified.
The Illinois Watch Company made Capone’s pocket watch, which has a bezel set with 72 cut diamonds and features a platinum face and gold-tone impressed numerals and hands.
The reverse side of the case bears the initials “AC,” and is comprised of 23 cut diamonds encircled by an additional 26. The interior contains a 17-jewel movement with gold wheels and jewel cups.
The lot also included the original 12-inch watch chain made of 14-karat white gold.
Another highlight in the June 24 sale was the promise ring Clyde Barrow gave to Bonnie Parker, which sold for $25,000 Saturday.
Though the ring sold for well below its $40,000 pre-sale estimate, the final hammer price of the piece (excluding the buyer’s premium) still made it the second most expensive lot in the sale. 
The ring originally was believed to have been created by Barrow himself--who was known to be very artistic and crafty--while he was in prison, but RR Auction’s jewelry expert later updated his findings, saying that he believed Parker’s ring was likely manufactured by the Uncas jewelry company in the early 1930s.
The ring draws from the same Western-style design themes that inspired Barrow’s jewelry-making though, the auction house said, featuring a three-headed snake set with faux green and red gemstones. It was recovered in the couple’s 1933 Ford Model B after the “Sowers Raid” in Texas in 1933.
Other highlights from Saturday’s sale include a special demurrer signed by Capone relating to the case between him and the State of Florida dated April 26, 1930, which sold for $19,375; a handwritten musical manuscript of “Humoresque” from Capone written out while he was incarcerated at Alcatraz that sold for $18,750; and a letter written by Bonnie Parker and signed by Clyde Barrow to ex-Barrow gang member Raymond Hamilton at the Dallas County Jail, circa April 1934, which went for $16,250.
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