An international public auction concluded yesterday, with a bidder paying over 2,555,000 dollars to acquire a vehicle that has drawn attention online for ten days. This car, a black four-door Mercedes-Benz 770K, was used by three Arab kings, all of whom, along with some close associates, met violent ends; the oldest was 48 years old, and the youngest was just 23.
The new owner of the vehicle remains unidentified at this time. The car belonged to King Faisal I of Iraq, who reigned from 1921 until his death in 1933 at the age of 48 during routine medical examinations in Bern, Switzerland. His death was officially attributed to arteriosclerosis, although rumors circulated that he had been poisoned after a British nurse allegedly offered him tea laced with arsenic. He was embalmed and transported to Italy, then Haifa and Akka, finally being buried in the royal cemetery in Baghdad on September 15, 1933, where suspicions of foul play lingered.
Following his death, the Mercedes passed to his son, King Ghazi, who used it for official government tasks. Just 14 days after celebrating his 27th birthday, he died on April 4, 1939, in a suspicious car accident in Baghdad, losing control and crashing into a power pole. There were strong indications that this incident was more than mere misfortune, especially after his servant, Abdul Said, disappeared immediately following the accident, and a wound was found on the back of his head caused by a sharp object.
King Faisal I, his son King Ghazi, and his grandson King Faisal II, along with his uncle and regent Abdul Ilah, all used this Mercedes and ultimately met tragic ends—by poison, orchestrated car accidents, or gunfire. The car was then inherited by King Faisal II, who was only six years old at the time, which allowed his uncle, Abdul Ilah, to also utilize it. When Faisal II reached the age of 18 and ascended to the throne in 1953, he drove the car as his predecessors had, until he was overthrown in a bloody coup on July 14, 1958, leading to his death at the age of 23 in the infamous "Al-Rihab Palace Massacre."
In this massacre, the coup plotters also shot his uncle Abdul Ilah and killed all members of the Iraqi royal family, with the sole survivor being Princess Hayam, the wife of Abdul Ilah. Prime Minister Nuri al-Said, who also drove the Mercedes, was hunted down and executed after being captured the day after he escaped, his body dragged through the streets of Baghdad.
The fact that the company manufactured 117 of these cars between 1930 and 1938, identified by the plaque "Baghdad 83807," does not imply that the vehicle is cursed or brings misfortune to its owners, but rather coincidental information.
Following the king's death, the car was sent to Beirut for refurbishment before being returned to Iraqi authorities and kept in Baghdad. As noted by "Al Arabiya," it was purchased by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Foundation in 1967 and shipped to a museum in Indianapolis, Indiana, where it was exhibited, sometimes in car racing events.
It is worth noting that Hitler also owned multiple cars of this model. Three weeks ago, this particular vehicle was offered for auction, drawing global media attention. The car features a convertible roof, a 7.7-liter engine, and a three-speed manual transmission, along with its historical connection to three Iraqi kings and its modern history.
