This newly authenticated photograph of Wild West outlaw Billy the Kid, bought for $2 at an antique shop, could be worth around $5 million.
A item of Billy the Kid ( forget ) in the original tintype .
It ’s not every day you ’re told you may make a profit of approximately $ 5 million from a purchase in a debris shop . But this is just what happen to collector Randy Guijarro .
This fresh discoveredimageof Henry McCarty , better known as Billy the Kid , is currently making its round on the cyberspace , becoming just the second authenticated photo of the Wild West outlaw and possibly the most worthful .
A detail of Billy the Kid (left) in the original tintype.
The uncommon Billy the Kid photo was purchased by Guijarro for only $ 2 at an passee workshop in Fresno , California in 2010 . He admitted to CNN affiliate KSEE in August that the pic was a last - minute purchase : “ I had just a duo of buck left , and I found three photograph I liked , and of the three , the old tintype , I actually kind of chucked it back in the box . ” But he said something order him to keep it , and that he did .
Thetintypereveals Billy the Kid savour a game of croquet with members of his gang , The Regulators , in Lincoln County , New Mexico .
A numismatics firm , Kagin ’s Inc. , announced it had authenticated the photo in the first place this month . Senior numismatologist , David McCarthy , after carefully inspecting the photo for a twelvemonth , determined that it was indeed genuine .
“ When we first saw the photograph , we were understandably skeptical — an original Billy the Kid photo is the Holy Grail of Western Americana .
“ We had to be certain that we could answer and verify where , when , how and why this pic was taken . unsubdivided resemblance is not enough in a case like this — a squad of expert had to be assembled to address each and every detail in the photo to ensure that nothing was out of place .
“ After more than a twelvemonth of methodical study including my own inspection of the website , there is now overwhelming grounds of the picture ’s authenticity . ”
Kagin ’s proprietor Donald Kagin add : “ The historical importance of a photograph of Billy the Kid alongside known penis of his gang and prominent Lincoln County citizen is incalculable . This is perhaps the single most compelling piece of Western Americana that we have ever see . ”
The photograph will be the subject of atwo - hour documentaryairing on Sunday , October 18th on the National Geographic Channel .
