Christie's says the computer is valued at $500K

Nov 3, 2014 19:17 GMT  ·  By

A complete Apple-1 computer sold by Steve Jobs himself to its original owner is going on auction at Christie’s next month, and is expected to fetch half a mill, Reuters reports.

Dubbed the "Ricketts Apple-1 Personal Computer,” named after its original owner Charles Ricketts, the computer is now being sold by a certain Robert Luther, a Virginia collector who was lucky enough to witness a 2004 police auction of storage locker goods and had the inspiration to acquire it, “without knowing all the details of its history,” according to the report.

“I knew it had been sold from the garage of Steve Jobs in July of 1976, because I had the buyer's canceled check,” Luther said. “My computer had been purchased directly from Jobs, and based on the buyers address on the check, he [Charles Ricketts] lived four miles from Jobs.”

Andrew McVinish, Christie's director of decorative arts, is quoted as saying, “It all started with the Apple-1 and with this particular machine. When you see a child playing with an iPad or iPhone, not too many people know that it all started with the Apple-1,” he added. “So to be able to own a machine that started the digital revolution is a very powerful attraction.”

Apple-1 computers have fetched a lot more for a lot less history. For instance, just last month one such computer sold for double its pre-sale estimate, fetching a whopping $905,000 (€725,000) for the auction house that sold it.

Considering that the Ricketts Apple-1 Personal Computer is something that Jobs himself handed to its original owner, possibly still bearing the Apple co-founder’s fingerprints - though admittedly there's very little chance of that - there’s no reason not to expect this one to sell for a similar amount.