Posted on 02/25/2024 2:11:25 PM PST by Red Badger
Featured Image Credit: YouTube/Inside Edition
A man who bought an old photo from an antiques shop in California was stunned when he realised how much it was actually worth.
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Randy Guijarro picked up the $2 photograph along with two others, from a memorabilia shop in Fresno County, California in 2010.
But once he was home and had the chance to take a closer look at the image, he realised it was a photograph of the infamous Billy the Kid.
Guijarro picked up the $2 (£1.50) photograph along with two others. Credit: Kagin's Billy the Kid - real name Henry McCarty (alias William H. Bonney) - was an Old West American outlaw.
The image in question, believed to be from 1878, appears to show Billy at a wedding, with four of his gang members and his girlfriend.
“I really just liked the looks of [it]. It’s 4 x 5 inches, it’s a tintype, and it’s a country scene,” Guijarro told National Geographic.
“It’s not till I put it under a magnifying glass [that I thought], ‘Oh my, what have we got going on here?'"
The photo shows Billy the Kid on the left. Credit: Kagin's Guijarro explained that he was familiar with Billy the Kid, and couldn't believe it when he realised the photo was of him.
He added: "When I got to the guy wearing the hat, I went, 'Wow, he’s really familiar, what’s up?'
"I’m familiar with Billy the Kid, so I knew who he was and what he looked like. I really looked hard and said, 'Man, this is Billy the Kid, I can’t believe it!' To me it was striking—the way he was standing, the hat, everything."
Guijarro and wife Linda set about researching and trying to prove the photo was authentic.
“It took us a year [of] initial research, reading up and getting up to speed. Linda and I became authenticators and historians by default,” he said.
The pair then spent four years travelling and speaking to experts, but many dismissed their claims.
Eventually, auction house Kagin's was able to verify the photograph, which is one of only two photos of the infamous outlaw. The photo has now been insured for a whopping $5m.
A man who bought an old photo from an antiques shop in California was stunned when he realised how much it was actually worth.
Randy Guijarro picked up the $2 photograph along with two others, from a memorabilia shop in Fresno County, California in 2010.
But once he was home and had the chance to take a closer look at the image, he realised it was a photograph of the infamous Billy the Kid.
While there are some people who still do not believe the photo is authentic, Guijarro says he 'laid out physical proof' but heard nothing back.
"I lay out physical proof, I get nothing back. So, I don’t even like to give credence to their names anymore," he added.
At present, there's only one other authenticated photo of Billy the Kid, bought by businessman William Koch back in 2011, for an eyewatering $2.3m.
Old West Ping! Billy the Kid playing Croquet!..............
Yeah, right after that pic though he beat that other guy to death with his croquet mallet.
There was a film titled “Old Henry” about Billy in his later years raising a son on a farm. I caught it on Netflix. It was quite entertaining.
Yeah, right after that pic though he beat that other guy to death with his croquet mallet.
The photographer high tailed it out of there before his beating.
Funny how the only part of the image that is blurred is Billy’s face.
When I was a kid, I bought a 1943 COPPER penny, where the “3” looked about the same.
He was shot and killed at age 21 by Sheriff Pat Garrett.................
My guess is the pics are not authentic and the guy who bought them knows it
His face isn’t blurred.
lol
11/18/2017 10:32:29 PM PST · by nickcarraway · 47 replies
KRQE ^ | November 14, 2017 | Kim Vallez
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3606119/posts
Newly Discovered Billy the Kid Photograph Authenticated
10/12/2015 3:21:46 AM PDT · by lowbridge · 98 replies
madmimi.com ^ | october 5, 2015
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3347595/posts
It looks it, to me. More than the rest of the blow-up, or picture, and markedly so.
Gotta read the entire link I posted...Interesting..Experts have at it....
Gotta say, having no idea what made the photo so valuable, my first thought upon seeing it was ‘That’s Billy the kid’…
I watched a documentary on this guy a few years ago. The verification process started by finding the shack in the background. I believe it was either the Tunstell or McSween Ranch. Also I believe they identified a number of the regulators by description, as well as Sally Chisolm who was easier to identify.
my link at 13 has the story of the picture. fun read
>>raising a son on a farm<p<
Hico, Texas?
Publius was not claiming the film was a documentary. In the film - and Publius is right, it is very entertaining - Billy the Kid has been hiding out for decades living under a false name on a quiet out-of-the-way farm.
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