Personal belongings that once sat quietly in the Georgia home of President Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter are headed to the auction block as part of a sweeping Christie’s sale marking the nation’s 250th anniversary.
Christie’s announced that items from the private collection of the former President and First Lady will be offered in January as part of two major Americana auctions tied to the upcoming semiquincentennial of the Declaration of Independence. The sale includes historically significant documents and artworks, as well as intimate objects meant to reflect the Carters’ personal lives and decades-long marriage.
The Carter items will be featured primarily in The American Collector, an online auction running from January 13 through January 27, 2026, with both sales open to the public at Rockefeller Center from January 16 through January 22.
Christie’s said a portion of the proceeds from the Carter collection will benefit the Carter Family Foundation, which supports projects tied to the family’s longtime work in rural Georgia.
Among the most personal items heading to auction is a handwritten birthday note from President Carter to Rosalynn Carter, written on White House stationery while he was in office. The note includes the message, “It’s nice to be growing old together with you,” and carries a presale estimate of $2,000 to $3,000, according to Christie’s.
The selection was curated with the help of the Carters’ daughter, Amy Carter, who worked alongside Christie’s specialists to sort through family belongings. She said in a Christie’s press release that the items were chosen to reflect both her parents’ public service and their private devotion to one another.
“It is a pleasure to share this glimpse into my parents’ world,” Amy Carter said in a statement reported by Southern Living. “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.”
The Carter offerings also include furniture handcrafted by the former President, an avid woodworker, along with campaign memorabilia, scarves featuring peanut motifs, and paintings created by Carter himself. Christie’s press release said the objects were selected not only for their political significance, but also for their connection to daily life inside the Carter household.
Two matching armchairs from the Carters’ home in Plains, Georgia, are also included. The chairs gained renewed attention after a 2021 visit by then-President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden, when a widely circulated photograph showed the seated Carters appearing much smaller. Amy Carter told Southern Living the image became a source of family amusement.
We’re pleased to share this wonderful photo from the @POTUS and @FLOTUS visit to see the Carters in Plains, Ga.!
Thank you President and Mrs. Biden! pic.twitter.com/QcA33iUev4
— The Carter Center (@CarterCenter) May 4, 2021
The Carter items will be offered alongside a wide range of Americana in Christie’s We the People: America at 250 live auction on January 23, 2026. That sale includes rare founding-era documents such as a printed draft of the Constitution annotated by Founding Father Rufus King, a signed version of the Emancipation Proclamation, and a contemporary broadside edition of the Declaration of Independence.
Christie’s Chairman of the Americas, Marc Porter, said the combined auctions are intended to showcase the breadth of American history through objects ranging from foundational documents to domestic furnishings. “America’s multifaceted history, spirit, and cultures can be found in the incredible, storied objects that Christie’s New York is sharing with the public,” Porter said in the press release.
Christie’s described the January events as part of the largest Americana Week in the auction house’s history, with nearly 700 lots and total estimates ranging from $80 million to $120 million.
The online auction featuring the Carter items opens January 13, 2026.
