Olivetti Lettera 32 Sells for $254,500 at Auction

Cormac McCarthy 76 an American author bought a pale blue Lettera 32 in the early 1960s for  $50 from a pawnshop.  As it was showing signs of wear, having never been serviced and only had the dust blown out, he decided to auction the typewriter for a non profit making research institute.

Christies in New York were auctioning the Lettera last Friday with a guide price of $15,000 to $20,000. The story was picked up by newspapers in both the UK and USA and was also covered by the BBC World Service. There are over 100 links on Google.

In the event it was sold for $254,500

A friend has bought him a replacement Lettera for less than $20!

 For further details follow:-  www.nytimes.com/2009/12/05/books/05arts-MCCARTHYSTYP_BRF.html