With the presidential inauguration front of mind, CBS News interviewed Nathan Raab, president of The Raab Collection and author of The Hunt for History, to get expert analysis on the rarity and value of presidential autographs. The men carved into Mount Rushmore—George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln are the most popular, Raab told CBS—and Alexander Hamilton, though never president, is also quite coveted, due in large part to the Broadway musical.
What makes collectors want to own historical documents? “You’re touching a piece of history, and it’s the only way we have to directly connect with someone who we may admire. It’s something that we know they touched, because they signed it,” he said. Raab also discussed famous forgeries and how to spot them. The segment aired on the program CBS Saturday Morning. Watch it here:
