Madoff memorabilia hits auction block: Start your own financial scandals collection

Bernie Madoff's collection of jewelry, sports memorabilia, furs, and even duck decoys is set to hit the auction block in a U.S. Marshalls-sponsored sale that will raise money to back his victims.

Gaston & Sheehan Auctioneers is handling the sale, which will be at the Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers at 811 7th Avenue at 52nd Street in New York City.

You can view the 65-page catalog online (PDF file) and, if you just can't live without at least one the several lots of Madoff's Wayne Gretzky cards, fill out the absentee bidding form here. Among the lots to be sold:

• A blue satin with orange trim New York Mets jacket with Madoff's name embroidered on the back (Estimate: $500-$720)
• Three Boogie Boards with "Madoff" written on them in marker (estimated to bring $80 as a lot)
• A 1960 Hofstra University ring with Madoff's initials (Estimate: $300)

There's definitely some cool stuff to be had at the auction but you can start your own financial scandals collection on your own -- with the help of eBay. Here are a few of my favorite lots currently listed:

• An Enron Communications clock (with a couple Enron memo pads tossed in). Starting bid: $9.99
• An 18-foot Roger Deatherage solid mahogany conference table, custom-built for Enron's Houston headquarters. Buy it Now: $4,999
• A Mueller lounge chair from Enron Headquarters: Buy it Now: $199 each, 10 available
• A neon yellow Crazy Eddie Display sign that was in the front window of the 86th Street location on the east side of Manhattan. Buy it Now: $595
• A Madoff Securities Financial Statement (A 100% genuine record of fake trades). Currently at: $41
• A "Fire it up with Lehman Brothers High Yield" apron. Starting Bid: $17

It's worth noting that interest in financial scandal memorabilia seems to peek when the crime is in the headlines -- and then wanes as it drifts into the collective memory.

So it might make sense to buy Enron memorabilia now and then wait a few years until Madoff's crime is eclipsed by something bigger, leaving his trinkets available at bargain prices