CHICAGO — A former senior embalmer at the Memphis Funeral Home is auctioning off tools allegedly used to embalm and prepare Elvis Presley’s body in 1977 for a private viewing the day after he died.
For up to an estimated $8,000, Elvis fans on Aug. 12 will have a chance to splurge on a “John Doe” tag purportedly used on Elvis’ body at the hospital, along with rubber gloves, forceps, lip brushes, a comb, eyeliner, needle injectors and aneurysm hooks said to have been used during the king of rock ‘n’ roll’s funeral preparations, according to Chicago-based Leslie Hindman Auctioneers, which is hosting the sale.
The items were purportedly used only once.
In previous auctions, people have shelled out big bucks for anything belonging to the dead and famous. Clumps of Elvis’ dark hair have gone for about $18,000, and a syringe used on Abraham Lincoln on his deathbed went for around $10,000, Hindman said.
