"Wild Bill Hickok is as big an icon of the Old West as there is," he said. The item has attracted special attention compared to the other 500 items listed in the sale, Ferrell said. The pistol, a piece of Wild West history, went on display for public viewing on Friday.
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Moments after Monday's sale ended, potential bidders were already calling about the gun, Ferrell said. Typically, the auctioneers will receive bids for high-interest unsold items for about a week after the auction, Ferrell said. There's no way to state a reason why it didn't sell." According to Bonhams' rules, the gun's owners could take the pistol back, list it in an upcoming sale or accept bids submitted in the days following the auction. "It was a fairly bold estimate," Ferrell said. Hickok's revolver was valued between $300,000 and $500,000.
![wild bill hickok wild bill hickok](https://d.ibtimes.co.uk/en/full/402120/wild-bill-hickok.jpg)
The reserve price is private, but it is typically set between 20 and 30 percent less than the minimum of the item's estimated value, Ferrell said. 2 revolver at $150,000, but potential buyers were only willing to pay $220,000, less than what the consigners would sell it for, Bonhams arms and armor specialist James Ferrell said.
![wild bill hickok wild bill hickok](http://cdn.history.com/sites/2/2015/07/hith-Wild_Bill_Hickok_sepia.png)
Bonhams Auctioneers started the bidding for the Smith & Wesson No. By Laila Kearney SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The revolver carried by Old West lawman James "Wild Bill" Hickok on the day he was shot down at a Deadwood saloon failed to sell at an auction in San Francisco on Monday, with bidders failing to meet the steep reserve set by the gun's owners.