The 30 Minute Rule begins October 14 at 7:00 PM EDT. An Initial Bid Must Be Placed By October 14 at 6:00 PM EDT To Participate After 6:00 PM EDT
Collection of 23 artifacts documenting the Prohibition and early organized crime era, consisting of 20 original New York Police Department diptych mug shots (each approx. 5 x 2.75), one original standing police mug shot (9.5 x 6.75), and two NYPD wanted posters (both 8 x 8) for Murder, Inc. figures Mendy Weiss and Phil Cohen. The group is highlighted by original mug shots of Charles ‘Lucky’ Luciano, Dutch Schultz, Albert Anastasia, Louis ‘Lepke’ Buchalter, and other underworld figures. The reverses of the diptych mug shots retain their original NYPD identification cards, completed in manuscript with each subject's aliases, residence, physical description, occupation, arrest information, and other police notations, some bearing later departmental updates. In overall very good to fine condition, with some creasing and toning.
The collection was acquired from the family of Burton B. Turkus (1908–1982), the famed prosecutor whose successful prosecution of Murder, Inc. helped dismantle the notorious organized crime syndicate during the 1940s. The transfer was facilitated by family associate Jeffrey Kleinbardt, and the lot is accompanied by mailing envelopes addressed to Turkus that support its provenance. The Turkus family also donated a similar group of original NYPD mug shots to John Jay College, where Turkus later served on the faculty.
Spanning the formative years of American organized crime – from the Prohibition era through the rise of the National Crime Syndicate and Murder, Inc. – this exceptional archive ranks among the most important groups of original NYPD gangster mug shots to reach the market in recent years. Rich in historical significance, the collection preserves a remarkable visual record of many of the twentieth century's most infamous organized crime figures.
