In November 2021, an original copy of the US Constitution was publicly auctioned at Sotheby's. The listing sparked the imagination of the crypto community, spawning the formation of Constitution DAO: A DAO intent on buying the US Constitution. The Sotheby's auction was historic, full of intrigue and twists that lasted long beyond the final sale.

What started as a joke became an attempt at history. In November 2021 an original copy of the US Constitution was announced for auction at Sotheby's. With a raging bull market soaring popularity, Crypto twitter joked that a DAO should buy the Constitution. The Cambrian Explosion of DAOs led several crypto-natives to take the joke seriously. The result was Constitution DAO.

Constitution DAO was formed with the slogan "We are gonna buy the Constitution" or #WAGBTC on Twitter. The DAO and its memes went viral with (📜, 📜), Nicholas Cage and National Treasure, and, of course, wagbtc leading the way. The movement made national headlines as the DAO raised $47 million from 17,000 wallets in 3 days, shattering all previous records for crowdfunding. DAO participants could claim $PEOPLE tokens as part of the DAO governance. It looked like Crypto was going to buy the Constitution.

On the day of the auction, all of crypto tuned in to watch the sale (and Brooke Lampley).

A mystery bidder battled the DAO for the constitution. When bidding stopped, the copy of The Constitution sold for $43.2 million. The Crypto community and Constitution DAO thought for certain they had won the auction. After all, the DAO had raised a total of $47 million.

To the community's dismay, the DAO was not the winning bidder. Billionaire Ken Griffin of Citadel had won the auction and planned to loan the document to a museum in Arkansas. The DAO fell short because its leaders felt that they would not have adequate funds to upkeep the constitution if they bid any more. The DAO failed at their mission but were wildly successful in capturing the world's attention and proving the power of the DAO.

In the coming days the Constitution DAO wound down and members could re-claim the majority of their ETH. There was an odd attempt by outsiders to revamp the DAO. The price of $PEOPLE went up nearly 800%, 8 times the ETH claim value, and many DAO members made a profit on the failed DAO.

A similar group tried again to buy a copy of The Constitution at auction in 2022. Their efforts came in the midst of the bear market and fund-raising fell far short of the previous mark. Constitution DAO2 only raised $313,000 and again failed to buy the Constitution.

While Constitution DAO was unable to buy The Constitution, they were wildly successful in capturing the imagination of crypto, garnering mainstream media coverage, and proving the power of DAOs.

In November 2021, an original copy of the US Constitution was publicly auctioned at Sotheby's. The listing sparked the imagination of the crypto community, spawning the formation of Constitution DAO: A DAO intent on buying the US Constitution. The Sotheby's auction was historic, full of intrigue and twists that lasted long beyond the final sale.

What started as a joke became an attempt at history. In November 2021 an original copy of the US Constitution was announced for auction at Sotheby's. With a raging bull market soaring popularity, Crypto twitter joked that a DAO should buy the Constitution. The Cambrian Explosion of DAOs led several crypto-natives to take the joke seriously. The result was Constitution DAO.

Constitution DAO was formed with the slogan "We are gonna buy the Constitution" or #WAGBTC on Twitter. The DAO and its memes went viral with (📜, 📜), Nicholas Cage and National Treasure, and, of course, wagbtc leading the way. The movement made national headlines as the DAO raised $47 million from 17,000 wallets in 3 days, shattering all previous records for crowdfunding. DAO participants could claim $PEOPLE tokens as part of the DAO governance. It looked like Crypto was going to buy the Constitution.

On the day of the auction, all of crypto tuned in to watch the sale (and Brooke Lampley).

A mystery bidder battled the DAO for the constitution. When bidding stopped, the copy of The Constitution sold for $43.2 million. The Crypto community and Constitution DAO thought for certain they had won the auction. After all, the DAO had raised a total of $47 million.

To the community's dismay, the DAO was not the winning bidder. Billionaire Ken Griffin of Citadel had won the auction and planned to loan the document to a museum in Arkansas. The DAO fell short because its leaders felt that they would not have adequate funds to upkeep the constitution if they bid any more. The DAO failed at their mission but were wildly successful in capturing the world's attention and proving the power of the DAO.

In the coming days the Constitution DAO wound down and members could re-claim the majority of their ETH. There was an odd attempt by outsiders to revamp the DAO. The price of $PEOPLE went up nearly 800%, 8 times the ETH claim value, and many DAO members made a profit on the failed DAO.

A similar group tried again to buy a copy of The Constitution at auction in 2022. Their efforts came in the midst of the bear market and fund-raising fell far short of the previous mark. Constitution DAO2 only raised $313,000 and again failed to buy the Constitution.

While Constitution DAO was unable to buy The Constitution, they were wildly successful in capturing the imagination of crypto, garnering mainstream media coverage, and proving the power of DAOs.