A shotgun that Soviet leader Nikita Khroosjshov gave the United States to symbolize peace for three years before the world came close to the Nuclear War was created for sale.
The graceful double barrel weapon was one of the two handed over by the Russian dictator during his unprecedented state visit to America in September 1959.
Khroosjshov gave a gun to President Dwight Eisenhower and the other – the one for sale – to Defense Minister Neil Mcelroy.
During his 12-day visit, Khroosjsjov stated his wish 'to achieve better relationships between our two countries and to promote peace around the world'.
When thanking the Russian leader, Mcelroy called the shotgun “handsome” and expressed his hope that “the firearms used by our two countries in the future do not have to be longer than this hunting gun for the preservation of world peace.”
But three years later, in October 1962, Khroosjsjov's decision to bring Soviet rocket in Cuba pushed the world on the edge of nuclear conflict in what became known as the Cuban rocket crisis.
A shotgun that Soviet leader Nikita Khroosjsjov gave the United States to symbolize peace for three years before the world came close to the Nuclear War has arrived for sale
Soviet leader Nikita Khroosjsjov and his wife Nina (second left) pose with US President Dwight Eisenhower and his wife Mamie during their visit to the US, September 15, 1959
The shotgun, which is described as in pristine state, is sold through the American dealer the RAAB collection for $ 125,000 (£ 97,000).
The gun was made by artisans in the Izhevsk region in Russia.
It has graceful engravings of hunting scenes, including a golden fox with prey in his teeth.
Nathan Raab, the president of the Raab collection, said: “This is a remarkable discovery and a beautiful artifact from a crucial moment in the history of the big 20th-century forces.”
The journey of Khroosjsjov marked the first time that a Soviet head of Sate had received an invitation to the White House.
It only came a few weeks after the American vice president Richard Nixon had been to Moscow.
The shotgun, which is described as in pristine state, is sold through the American dealer the RAAB collection
It has graceful engravings of hunting scenes
The gun was made by craftsmen in the Izhevsk region in Russia
The respective visits came at a time of rising tensions in the Cold War, 14 years after when the US and Russia ended the Second World War on the same side.
Two days before Khroosjsjov arrived in Washington with his wife Nina, daughters Julia and Rada, son Sergei and son-in-law Alexei, the Soviet Union successfully landed the unmanned Luna II spacecraft on the moon.
In the Oval Office he gave President Eisenhower a model of a metal atmosphere that was placed and designed on the Luna vessel to explode as soon as it reached the space, so that parts that were registered with the 'Union of the Soviet -Socialist Republics' would land on the Moon.
The delegation also gave bottles of vodka and traditional Russian nest dolls.
President Eisenhower organized a state dinner in the White House, while Khroosjshov and his family also toured the country.
The two leaders then had conversations in Camp David, the retreat of the president in Maryland.
The journey of Khroosjsjov marked the first time that a Soviet head of Sate had received an invitation to the White House
Nikita Khroosjsjov waves while he leaves the United Nations headquarters in New York, September 18, 1959
In the Oval Office, Khroosjsjov President Eisenhower gave a model of a metal sphere, two days after the Russian spacecraft Luna II had landed on the moon
During his visit to Khroosjsjov, Mcelroy wrote: 'Of course the hunting gun is indeed handsome.
'It offers proof of a quality of craftsmanship on which every country can be proud.
'In thanking for the shotgun, I may fully answer the wish to me by your representative that the firearms that our two countries have used in the future should not be greater than this shotgun for the preservation of world peace and that even the hunting rifle is only used for sports purposes.
“Like all our people here, I hope that your trip to the United States can be favorable for you and for us to improve the mutual understanding of our respective nations.”
Although there was a lot of optimism for improved diplomatic relations after the successful visit of Khroosjshov, progress declined the following year.
Soviet troops shot an American U2 spy aircraft on 1 May 1960 and escalating tensions further.
The successor to Eisenhower as president, John F Kennedy, was in the White House when the rocket crisis came to a head two years later.
How the Cuban rocket crisis brought the world to the edge of Nuclear Armageddon in 1962
The Cuban rocket crisis in October 1962 brought the world as close as has ever been to the Nuclear War.
After the failed attempt by America to overthrow Fidel Castro, the Cuban strong man the Soviet Union allowed to use nuclear missiles in Cuba – the core heads at an easy striking distance from most of the US.
If Russia would choose, it could launch the rockets in the US before Washington had the chance to take revenge.
Nikita Khroosjsjov and John F Kennedy during a historic meeting a year before the Cuban rocket crisis broke out
America had already used ballistic rockets in Italy and Turkey – brought them to an easy striking distance from Moscow.
President John F Kennedy informed Americans during a television broadcast on October 22, 1962, that the Soviets had placed missiles in Cuba and that the US would set up a blockade around the island to force Castro and Khrushchev to remove from missiles.
He announced that America would be willing to use military violence if necessary to scare what was seen as a threat to national security – and the world was waiting with fixed breaths.
On October 24, 1962 there was another important moment when Soviet ships on his way to Cuba approached the line of American ships to force the blockade. An attempt to break the blockade would probably have resulted in a military impasse, but Soviet ships have been withdrawn.
An American invasion groups prepared for an invasion of Cuba, but were eventually demolished. Kennedy (photo) showed restraint by not attacking the Soviets or Cubans
A flashpoint that could have caused the entire war was when an American reconnaissance plane was shot on October 27, 1962.
An American invasion groups prepared for an invasion of Cuba, but were eventually demolished. The 35-year-old pilot of the redesigned plane, Major Rudolf Anderson, is considered the only American combat victim of the Cuban rocket crisis.
During the tense distance, Khroosjsjov and Kennedy were in contact to try to prevent any military escalation between the two super powers. On October 26, 1962, Khroosjsjov sent a message to Kennedy in which he offered to remove the Cuban rockets in exchange for a promise of American leaders not to invade Cuba.
The next day, Khroosjsjov sent a letter with the proposal that the USSR would dismantle his missiles in Cuba if the Americans would remove their rocket installations in Turkey.
Secret negotiations between Soviet leader Nikita Khroosjsjov and JFK and between his brother Robert Kennedy, the Attorney General and Soviet ambassador Anatoly Dobynin led to a deal. The American Minister of Defense Robert McNamara said that after the incident it would be the 'last Saturday he would ever see' while the tensions continued to escalate.
The Soviets agreed to withdraw their rockets in exchange for America who promised not to invade Cuba. The US also promised to remove outdated missiles from Turkey. Both parties claimed the victory as a way to give a positive PR -spin to the crisis.
Cuban Prime Minister Fidel Castro enjoys a steak dinner while holding a spontaneous press conference at the Theresa Hotel in Harlem during his visit to New York on September 23, 1960
