A group of crypto enthusiasts was outbid in its effort to buy a first-edition copy of the U.S. Constitution.
ConstitutionDAO entered a bidding war with an anonymous client in an auction organized by Sotheby’s on Thursday, only for the unnamed client to outbid the cryptocurrency enthusiasts for the record-breaking price of $43.2 million.
“While this wasn’t the outcome we hoped for, we still made history tonight with ConstitutionDAO … We are so incredibly grateful to have done this together with you all and are still in shock that we even got this far,” the group said in its Discord server after losing the bid.
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Sotheby’s confirmed the $43.2 million bid for the Constitution was “record-breaking” and that all proceeds would benefit the Dorothy Tapper Goldman Foundation’s educational programs.
The Constitution was directly underbid by @ConstitutionDAO, a group of 17,000+ people from around the world who banded together through social media within the last week to raise money to acquire the document, marking the largest crowdfunding initiative ever put together. (?,?)
— Sotheby’s (@Sothebys) November 19, 2021
ConstitutionDAO is a decentralized autonomous organization. DAOs rely on automated code sets to handle an organization’s decisions and financial transactions run through a blockchain. This is adopted for the sake of transparency, allowing a group of strangers to ensure their cryptocurrency donations are not abused or stolen.
The organization crowdfunded during a 72-hour period as part of its bidding attempt. More than 17,500 people donated to ConstitutionDAO, with an average donation of $206.26, according to CNET. By Thursday morning, the DAO raised more than $40 million.
We didn’t get the Constitution, but we made history nonetheless.
We broke records for the largest crowdfund for a physical object and most money crowdfunded in 72h, which will of course be refunded to everyone who participated.
To all our 17,437 contributors, THANK YOU ❤️
— ConstitutionDAO (?, ?) (@ConstitutionDAO) November 19, 2021
The Constitution copy in question is one of 11 still in existence from the initial printing of 500 copies in 1787 and one of just two still owned by private collectors.
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Participants will be refunded their contributions, minus network charges.
ConstitutionDAO’s bid is not the first time a collective of crypto enthusiasts has attempted to purchase a cultural artifact for millions of dollars. In October, PleasrDAO claimed it bought the only copy of Wu-Tang Clan’s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin from the U.S. government for $4 million.
