Swatch of fabric from Hindenburg sells from more than $36K

A swatch of canvas recovered from the wreckage of the Hindenburg has sold for more than $36,000 at auction.

Boston-based RR Auction says the piece of red cotton canvas was picked up at the disaster site by a teenager whose father was working the dock when the German airship exploded on May 6, 1937 in New Jersey.

The auction house says a known collector of Americana, who does not want to be identified, paid $36,282 for the 6.25 by 5-inch (12.7 by 15.9 centimeter) piece of fabric during Wednesday night's auction. The pre-auction estimate was up to $5,000.

Auction officials say the piece is unique because it is not gray, like most of the canvas from the airship, and must have come from the giant Nazi flags that were emblazoned on the tailfins.