A gun that notorious Prohibition-era gangster Al Capone nicknamed “honey” is up for auction again. This time, potential buyers can make offers in South Carolina on the gun that Capone’s family members attribute. regularly protect your lifeafter a Greenville-based auction house acquired what is now considered by some to be an iconic collectible.
The winning bid for Capone’s gun is expected to come at an exorbitant cost. Richmond Auctions will hold a series of auctions on the weapon next month, with a final price estimated at $2 million to $3 million. Their May 18 auction will come less than three years after it sold for just over $1 million at another auction in California. Bidding starts at $500,000.
The .45 Colt semi-automatic pistol was manufactured in 1911 and became one of Capone’s most prized possessions when he became infamous as Chicago’s seemingly untouchable crime boss in the 1920s. According to the FBI, Capone’s legacy includes a litany of criminal charges involving gambling, prostitution, bootlegging, bribery, drug trafficking, theft, racketeering and murder. It is believed that Capone, sometimes nicknamed “Scarface”, was behind this brutal Valentine’s day massacre in 1929.
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He evaded law enforcement for years before finally being convicted of several charges related to tax evasion and prohibition violations in 1931. He ultimately served approximately seven and a half years in federal prison of Atlanta and in the famous Alcatraz penitentiary, off the coast of San Francisco. Capone’s health deteriorated during his incarceration, and he died in 1947 at the age of 48.
The gangster’s .45 pistol, believed to be his “favorite” weapon, was given to his wife, Mae Capone, historians say. She passed it on to their son, Sonny Capone, who in turn passed it on to his daughters Diane and Barbara Capone after his own death in 2004.
Al Capone’s granddaughters initially put the gun up for auction in 2021, alongside around 200 of their grandfather’s personal belongings. Witherell’s Sacramento-based auction house facilitated bidding on a wide range of items that Capone owned during his life and were then part of his estate, including jewelry, watches and many weapons of different types. The .45, which ultimately sold for several hundred thousand dollars more than expected, went to a private collector.
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“That gun was kind of his protection and I think it saved his life a few times and that’s why he called her his sweetheart,” Diane Capone said in an interview with CBS News before this auction. She said that as far as she knew, her grandfather carried the gun with him wherever he went.
Critics decried the family’s decision to auction off items from Capone’s estate and turn a profit given that the gangster participated in numerous violent and deadly crimes during his reign in Chicago. But others point to the historical significance of Capone’s possessions today, particularly that of his prized “cherished” pistol.
“This particular Colt 1911 is more than just a firearm. It’s a relic of an era marked by anarchy and larger-than-life personalities,” said Kimmie Williams, firearms specialist at Richmond Auctions, in a press release. “Its deep connection to Al Capone adds an extra layer of appeal, making it a must-have and an asset for any world-class collector.”
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