Pink marble fragment; 5 x 5 in. (127 x 127 mm).

The train carrying the body of President Abraham Lincoln departed Washington, D.C. on 21 April 1865, its route retracing that taken by Lincoln before assuming office in 1861. Also onboard was the coffin containing the remains of Lincoln's son, Willie, who was to be reburied beside, his father in Springfield. Over the course of its 1,654-mile journey, the train made 13 major stops, at which Lincoln's coffin was removed from the train and brought to a public building for viewing.

At some point after Lincoln's burial at Oak Ridge Cemetery on 4 May, the table was cut into pieces, which were then sold as souvenirs. Very few pieces are known to survive today.

This piece is accompanied on its verso by a typewritten note which reads in full: "From the table on which the Body of Abraham Lincoln lay after his assassination, during the trip from Washington, D.C., to Springfield Illinois in a car of the Penn. R.R. April 15th, 1865."

In handwriting below is inscribed, "From N.P. Brook, Gen. Man. Phil. Div. Penn. R.R."

Provenance:

Louise Taper, Beverly Hills, California