Walt Disney's original hand-drawn map of Disneyland up for auction
It's the "most significant piece of Disneyland memorabilia to come to auction."
— -- A hand-drawn map of Disneyland by Walt Disney himself is about to become available.
It's the "single most significant piece of Disneyland memorabilia to come to auction to date," according to Van Eaton Galleries, the auction house arranging the sale. The map has not been viewed by the public in more than 60 years.
The map -- the first-released vision of Disneyland, which was pivotal in securing the financing Disney needed for the park -- has been in the possession of Grenade Curran all these years. Curran, who in 1955 was a young Disney employee, saw the map abandoned in the corner of Disney's office and asked if he could keep it.
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"Curran, knowing that the map was important, stored it away carefully as a memento of his time at the Studio and his friendship with Walt," according to a press release about the upcoming auction. "However, Curran was unaware that he was unknowingly preserving one of the most significant artifacts in Disney history."The auction house estimates the map will sell for between $750,000-$1,000,000 and says that will make it the most valuable Disneyland artifact ever offered at auction.
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The auction is set to take place June at Van Eaton Galleries in Sherman Oaks, California, with an exhibition in May where the public can view the items in person.
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