A piece of history up for auction: Beer Bottle from Hindenburg Disaster

[The Straight Story]

Beer Bottle from Hindenburg Disaster, World's Most Expensive
Singed Bottle of Lowenbrau Recovered From Historic Inferno Could Fetch $8,000


A singed bottle of beer recovered from the ashes of the Hindenburg disaster is expected to fetch $4,000 to $8,000 at auction this weekend -- the highest price ever for a bottle of beer.

Though most of the 62-year-old suds remain in the bottle, auctioneer Andrew Aldridge said the contents of the Lowenbrau bottle, discovered by a New Jersey firefighter in 1937 at the site of the airship's historic disaster, are undrinkable.

"It is the most valuable bottle of beer ever sold," said Aldridge of the British auction house Henry Aldridge & Sons. "But you wouldn't like to drink it, let me put it that way. It would taste putrid."

The Hindenburg, an enormous passenger-carrying hydrogen-filled German airship, burst into flames in May 6, 1937, over Lakehurst, N.J., killing 38 people.

The bottle, along with a silver-plated pitcher also discovered by fire Chief Leroy Smith at the scene of the disaster and estimated to fetch $17,000 to $22,000, is part of an auction of Hindenburg memorabilia going under the hammer on Saturday.

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/AheadoftheCurve/beer-bottle-hindenburg-disaster-worlds-expensive/story?id=9043449

"Here, hold mah beer and watch this..."

edited to add:

[trumad]

1. Cool

[The_Commonist]

2. That would be a 72 year old bottle of beer...

...not 62 years old.

(damn news sites that don't have editors! who knows what else is inaccurate in that story?)

[Doctor_J]

3. Oh, the humanity

[The Straight Story]

4. someone had to post this pic:

[Doctor_J]

5. Snark. Seeing that makes me want to watch a Roger Corman

film from the 50's. Looks just like one of his special effects.