Photo: Mecum/Wikimedia Commons
For the current generation, the name Elvis Presley may not mean as much as it did for the previous one. Yet this doesn't mean there's a single respectable adult out there who doesn't know who Elvis was and what he meant for this world.
The King of Rock and Roll was brought back into the spotlight last year, when Baz Luhrmann's Elvis biopic hit the screens world over. It still is, then, the perfect time for items related to the man to be brought out of storage or wherever they were hiding and put on the open market for a profit.
That's what's happening with this rare 1976 Harley-Davidson FLH, presently listed by house Mecum as one of the stars of its auction taking place this coming weekend in Indianapolis.
The bike is part of Harley's Bicentennial run, a series of anniversary road bikes made in honor of the United States' 200th birthday. As such, it is special in the way it looks, but also extremely rare, as only 750 of them are believed to have ever been made.
This one however draws its uniqueness from the fact it was owned by Elvis Presley himself. Not just owned, but actually the last Harley the singer bought, about a year before his death in 1977.
The bike came into Elvis' possession in 1976, and was registered to the star's home in Palm Springs, California. He doesn't seem to have used it much in the year he had it, as the odometer presently shows just 1,261 miles (2,029 km).
After Elvis' death the bike was purchased by a New Jersey hotel which displayed it for promotional purposes. In 1983 it somehow landed in a South Dakota museum called Pioneer, where it stayed until four years ago.
It's unclear what happened to the bike since it stopped being on display at Pioneer, but here it is now, freed by its current and unnamed owner who is trying to get rid of it by means of auction.
The Bicentennial is exactly as it was the year it was made, wrapped in a blue and black paint scheme and with all the anniversary bike's adornments still on. The frame holds the original and unmodified V-twin engine, tied to a four-speed transmission.
The Harley will go to its new owner complete with the Elvis-signed California pink title, but also with the original set of keys. Important to note that the bike sells with a historic title which will have to be surrendered should the buyer want to ride this thing on public roads.
Mecum doesn't make any estimates as to how much Elvis Presley's 1976 Harley-Davidson FLH Bicentennial might go for, but we'll come back to this story once we learn that crucial aspect.
That's what's happening with this rare 1976 Harley-Davidson FLH, presently listed by house Mecum as one of the stars of its auction taking place this coming weekend in Indianapolis.
The bike is part of Harley's Bicentennial run, a series of anniversary road bikes made in honor of the United States' 200th birthday. As such, it is special in the way it looks, but also extremely rare, as only 750 of them are believed to have ever been made.
This one however draws its uniqueness from the fact it was owned by Elvis Presley himself. Not just owned, but actually the last Harley the singer bought, about a year before his death in 1977.
The bike came into Elvis' possession in 1976, and was registered to the star's home in Palm Springs, California. He doesn't seem to have used it much in the year he had it, as the odometer presently shows just 1,261 miles (2,029 km).
After Elvis' death the bike was purchased by a New Jersey hotel which displayed it for promotional purposes. In 1983 it somehow landed in a South Dakota museum called Pioneer, where it stayed until four years ago.
It's unclear what happened to the bike since it stopped being on display at Pioneer, but here it is now, freed by its current and unnamed owner who is trying to get rid of it by means of auction.
The Bicentennial is exactly as it was the year it was made, wrapped in a blue and black paint scheme and with all the anniversary bike's adornments still on. The frame holds the original and unmodified V-twin engine, tied to a four-speed transmission.
The Harley will go to its new owner complete with the Elvis-signed California pink title, but also with the original set of keys. Important to note that the bike sells with a historic title which will have to be surrendered should the buyer want to ride this thing on public roads.
Mecum doesn't make any estimates as to how much Elvis Presley's 1976 Harley-Davidson FLH Bicentennial might go for, but we'll come back to this story once we learn that crucial aspect.
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