Up for Auction: Jeffrey Epstein’s Initial ‘Little Black Book

An extraordinary “criminal relic,” the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s original black book, could soon hit the auction block.

Online auction house Alexander Historical Auctions told Secrets today that it has the smaller and original Epstein book that holds the names, addresses, and information of nearly 400 entries.

It was Epstein’s first known book listing his associates, a 64-page predecessor to the larger book of secret listings used to help jail him on charges of sex trafficking minors. He died in a suspicious jail cell hanging in 2019.

The book came to light after Epstein’s death in New York City. “Of the 1,731 names contained in the two volumes together, 221 appear in our earlier book but do not appear” in the larger, later book, said the auction house, according to Business Insider, which had it checked for authenticity.

The indications are that it was the wealthy financer’s first book of friends and allies, including former President Donald Trump, before he lost it in midtown New York City in the 1990s.

“This criminal relic undoubtedly still has many stories to tell for those who want to do the digging. All the means are there,” Alexander President Bill Panagopulos said.

“Jeffrey Epstein was the epitome of evil, and this book should be forever kept as evidence of his awful crimes,” added Panagopulos, who frequently auctions historical and criminal artifacts in his international events. Past auctions have included the diary of Nazi war criminal Josef Mengele, the gold watch Marilyn Monroe gave to former President John F. Kennedy, and strands of hair from former President Abraham Lincoln tied together with parts of the American flag from his funeral train.

Many of the well-known names listed in Epstein’s second black book are not in the original. For example, former President Bill Clinton, David Copperfield, and Prince Andrew aren’t in it. And there is no indication that those in the book are suspected of wrongdoing.

The dates in the book suggest it was used before Epstein set up his “Pedophile Island.” He previously pleaded guilty in Florida state court in 2008 to one count each of soliciting minors for prostitution and soliciting a prostitute.

Among the details Panagopulos shared with Secrets was that there is an entry for “The White House,” a Kennedy family member, and a U.S. congressman.

“The book also contains entries for former Ford Models Inc. CEO Katie Ford, as well as an entry for ‘Masseuse/Masseur,’ which lists 24 women’s names and numbers, some with pager numbers as well, with one bearing the descriptive: ‘ugly back up,’ and eight women listed under ‘Exercise people’,” he told Secrets.

The entries are printed reproductions shrunk down to fit the book, which measures 4.5 inches by 5.25 inches.

Panagopulos added this description in his sale write-up: “There are 386 printed entries with two additional entries penned in a childlike hand on the last page, very similar to Epstein’s hand but the sample is too small for us to warrant this as fact. They vary in length from only a few lines to over 10-15 lines or more each, and each of these entries may have several more names included within. Additionally, 94 names bear black, hand-applied checkmarks, and five have been highlighted in yellow. All five names, including that of Donald Trump, are well-recognized financial and industrial figures. The significance of the checked and highlighted names is unknown. The details included in the vast majority of the entries are most extensive: Epstein not only includes the name, address and telephone number of his contact, but in most cases also adds other residential addresses and numbers, contact information for family members, secretaries, immediate employees, and associates of the individual, cell phone and pager numbers, and in at least one instance, a contact’s girl friend’s number.”

Panagopulos offered no suggested selling price. “As for estimates, I can’t give you one. It’s worth what someone wants to pay for it, either to research it, reveal its contents, or make it disappear forever,” Panagopulos said.

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Initially, he is offering it through sealed bids — and anonymously. If it doesn’t sell in that process, it will be publicly auctioned in July. Alexander is offering bidders a chance to review the book at its offices.

The book comes with an interesting backstory. It was found on a Fifth Avenue sidewalk in the 1990s and placed in storage. The owner offered to show it to media outlets once Epstein became infamous, but none responded. It was then placed on eBay and sold for under $500.