Own a piece of American history, say the descriptions, complete with a signed letter of authenticity from the Postmaster General himself.

Last week the United States Postal Service put 100 items from its private collection of memorabilia and artifacts up for auction on eBay.

Proof sheets, or artist renderings, of stamps commemorating the 20th anniversary of the moon landing or the 100th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty elicited actual awe from hardcore New Jersey philatelists.

Several of these items have never been in the hands of collectors. By 6 p.m. on Friday, bids on those two in particular had reached a combined $.

But this auction represents more than a stunt to rally fans or raise money for the struggling agency.

The same technology that put an ever-tightening death grip on the flow of letters in the U.S. also gave birth to eBay. That multinational darling of the dot-com era has become the postal service’s largest mailer of packages.

via Postal Service, Americana and an eBay auction – NJ Star-Ledger

related link: USPS collaborates with eBay to sell, auction postal merchandise