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Elvis funeral preparation tools removed from sale
By CMU Editorial | Published on Tuesday 27 July 2010
Medical instruments and other items used to prepare Elvis’ body for display at the singer’s funeral in 1977 have been withdrawn from sale at an upcoming auction. The collection, including rubber gloves, forceps, lip brushes, a comb, eye liner, needle injectors, and a toe tag, were removed from the listing not because of their grim nature but due to a dispute over their ownership.
The items had apparently been kept by a former embalmer, who wished to remain anonymous but had worked at the Memphis Funeral Home at the time of Elvis’ death and funeral. The items had been expected to reach up to $14,000 at the auction on 12 Aug, but were withdrawn when the funeral home claimed it owned them.
A spokeswoman for Leslie Hindman Auctioneers, Mary Williams said in a statement: “Due to questions of ownership, the retired embalmer and his son have decided to turn over the property to the Memphis Funeral Home and its parent company, Service Corporation International, with the intention of donation”.
The funeral home’s president, EC Daves, told local Tennessee newspaper The Commercial Appeal that there were no plans to take legal action now that the items had been returned, though stressed that there was no way to confirm their authenticity either.
