McNamara, one of the most significant cabinet members in American history, served as the head of the Pentagon from 1961 to 1968, and died in 2009 at the age of 93.
"For two hours, the history of the 1960s became a vivid reality for those who participated in this auction. The sale was filled with extraordinary pieces from the remarkable life of this pivotal figure," David Redden, Vice Chairman and Director of the Special Projects Departments, and yesterday's auctioneer noted.
The paperweight presented to McNamara after the end of a thirteen-day standoff between the United States and the Soviet Union in 1962 has sold for USD 95,500 - more than three times its estimate.
This was one of a series of silver paperweights commissioned by Kennedy which he gave to members of the Executive Committee of the National Security Council, military advisors and White House staff.
McNamara's Official Appointment as Secretary of Defense, signed by Kennedy and Secretary of State Dean Rusk sold for USD 20,000.
The personal archive of McNamara also included two Kennedy Administration's Cabinet Room Chairs, accompanied by an autograph letter of presentation signed by Jacqueline Kennedy, which sold for USD 146,500.
The Gulf of Tonkin Memorandum and Signing Pen fetched USD 37,500, exceeding its pre-sale estimate of USD 8,000.
Selling for five times its pre-sale estimate at USD 34,375 was The Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction - the supreme civil decoration in US - along with a document signed by President Johnson in which he states : "May your selfless service - spent in defending freedom - bring even greater rewards in the larger work you now undertake to promote freedom throughout the world".
It was given to McNamara in recognition of his seven years of service as Defence Secretary which ended in February 1968 when he left to become President of the World Bank, Sotheby's said in a statement.
