You Can Buy President Jimmy Carter's Paintings, Furniture, Mementos and a Love Letter to His Wife

The Hornet's Nest, Jimmy Carter, 2003 Christie's

Christie’s will be selling a trove of paintings, mementos and political artifacts from the private collection of President Jimmy Carter, who died in December 2024 at age 100, and his wife, Rosalynn Carter, who died in November 2023.

The collection is part of a sale called “The American Collector,” which Christie’s is holding from January 13 to January 27. Part of the proceeds will go to the nonprofit Carter Family Foundation.

The items from the Carter estate provide new insights into the couple’s long and multifaceted lives. These include photographs, a birthday note on White House stationery Carter wrote to his wife in 1978, a collection of pins from his presidential campaigns, a silver dish bearing the seal of the United States and documents from his time in the U.S. Naval Submarine School.

A letter from Jimmy Carter to his wife, Rosalynn, for her birthday that's dated August 18, 1978 Christie's

“It is a pleasure to share this glimpse into my parents’ world,” says Amy Carter, the daughter of the late president and first lady, in a statement. “I hope these objects paint a fuller picture of them—their lives of service, their devotion to each other, and the joy and curiosity that kept them learning and engaged throughout their lives.”

Amy was the only one of the Carters’ four children who lived full-time in the White House during the entirety of the presidency. The items at auction were retrieved and sorted from a storage facility near the Carter home in Georgia.

“[Amy] was very involved with showing us and kind of storytelling along the way, which gave a lot more context and color to how these objects were lived with,” Julia Jones, an associate specialist at Christie’s, explains to People’s Meredith Kile.

At auction, bidders will have the opportunity to take home peanut scarves the fashion designer Frankie Welch made for the couple when Carter was serving as the governor of Georgia in 1973, and which Rosalynn often wore; a Stetson hat made for the former president; a collection of Carter’s ties; and four original paintings, including Mountain Waterfall, which he completed in 2003 and depicts a stream in northern Georgia where he would fish for trout.

“All of my dad’s paintings feel special to me,” Amy Carter tells People in an email. “He was so happy and relaxed when he painted. I enjoy thinking of him at his easel in the garage, giving himself the time to just focus on something he loved.”

The auction also features wooden side tables hand-carved by the former president, who enjoyed woodworking in his spare time and called himself a “fairly proficient” craftsman, according to the Associated Press’ Bill Barrow. “I like to see what I have done, what I have made,” he once said, per the AP. The tables are expected to sell for between $500 and $1,000.

Quick fact: Jimmy Carter’s furniture In 1983, two sets of chairs built by the former president sold at auction for $41,000, which went to the Carter Presidential Library.

Christie’s is holding “The American Collector” in honor of America’s 250th birthday. As part of the same celebration, the auction house is also hosting a second sale called “We The People: America at 250.” Nine separate auctions and roughly 700 individual lots will be viewable both online and in person at Rockefeller Center for two weeks beginning in mid-January. Together, they are expected to fetch between $80 million and $120 million.

“America’s multifaceted history, spirit and cultures can be found in the incredible, storied objects,” Marc Porter, chairman of Christie’s America, says in Christie’s statement. “This rich, diverse group of objects … showcases the many overlapping histories and perspectives of our nation, and we are proud to show them.”

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