Historic Che Guevara Archive to be Auctioned by Heritage!

Dallas, TX: For four decades, former CIA operative Gustavo Villoldo has kept an archive of material related to Cuban guerilla leader Ernesto "Che" Guevara, including a lock of the legendary figure's hair. Now he's decided the time is right to offer those treasures to the world.

Born in Argentina in 1928, Guevara, an avowed Marxist and revolutionary who had been moved by the plight of the common people during his travels in South America, joined Fidel Castro's 26th of July movement which overthrew Batista's Cuban government in 1959. Quickly rising to prominence within Castro's organization, Guevara attained the position of "supreme prosecutor," and oversaw the trials and executions of countless members of the former regime. In 1965, Guevara left Cuba, intent on bringing his theories on guerilla warfare to other parts of the world, but he was captured by the CIA in Bolivia, and was executed by the Bolivian army on October 9, 1967. Since his death, Guevara has remained an important and controversial figure, whose image, ironically, adorns posters, t-shirts and other commercial items worldwide.

"As Guevara's body lay in a hastily-created morgue behind the hospital in Bolivia, Villoldo, the CIA agent who had been tasked with burying Guevara's remains, snipped off a lock of his hair, to prove he had completed his mission," said Tom Slater, Director of Americana auctions for Dallas-based Heritage Auction Galleries. "Villoldo has retained that important specimen for four decades, along with an impressive collection of documents relating to the slain revolutionary, which we are now pleased to offer to the collecting public."

"In addition to the hair sample," Slater said, "the archive consists of a form bearing Guevara's fingerprints, taken at the time of his death, a printed map of Vallegrande, Bolivia, used by Villoldo during his pursuit of Che and clearly marked to show the area in which Guevara died, a letter addressed to Guevara from 'Alejandro,' the President of Bolivia, regarding the details of a military operation and the distribution of personnel, a scrapbook kept by Villoldo with photos documenting his campaign against Guevara, two small cards signed by high-ranking Bolivian government officials kept by Villoldo and documented as being 'personal cards given to me to be used as a last resort in case I did not receive any cooperation,' and a collection of newspaper clippings relating to Guevara's death."

"This is an extremely important collection relating to one of the most important, intriguing, and controversial political figures of the twentieth century," Slater said. "Guevara's influence on contemporary politics cannot be underestimated, and this incredible collection of material, much of it never before seen, sheds new light on the life, and death, of this revered leader. All of this material, along with all the other lots in our auction, can be reviewed at www.HA.com, where interested collectors can view enlargeable, full color images of each and every auction lot, complete with full catalog descriptions, and can even place bids online from the comfort and convenience of their home or office."

The Che Guevara Archive will be offered in Heritage Auction Galleries' upcoming Rare Books & Manuscripts auction, to be held on October 25 & 26, 2007 in Dallas, TX.

Historic Che Guevara Archive, Including a Lock of His Hair, from the CIA Agent Who Supervised Che's Burial:
ESTIMATE: $100,000 & up

For more information about Heritage's auctions, and a complete record of prices realized, along with full-color, enlargeable photos of each lot, please visit www.HA.com.

Prospective consignors and sellers of political memorabilia, Americana, and related collectibles are invited to visit www.HA.com/Sell. Or simply email Tom Slater at TomS@HA.com.

To reserve your copy of any Heritage auction catalog, please contact Customer Service at 1-800-872-6467, ext. 1150, or visit www.HA.com/Catalog to order by email.