Lauren Bacall auction draws a crowd, and unexpectedly high bids
Sale fetches US$3.6 million, with bidders from 34 countries taking part
Hollywood screen icon Lauren Bacall’s personal possessions from the precious to the mundane hit the auction block in New York, drawing plenty of fans and fetching some US$3.6 million.
Collectors jostled for a memento of the Oscar-winner from among 740 lots at Bonhams auction house. Including two bronze sculptures by British artist Henry Moore sold in November’s Impressionist and Modern auction by Bonhams, the Bacall collection fetched US$5 million.
More than 1,500 bidders from 34 countries vied for items that ranged from from fine art to kitchenware, and avant-garde to kitsch, and included jewellery and clothes, aboriginal and African art, English and French furniture and items bought in antique shops around the world.
Items that date from her marriage to legendary on-screen co-star Humphrey Bogart and sculptures by English artist Henry Moore were among the most prized items.
Most of the items sold were at or above the price estimates made by the auctioneers, Bonhams said.
A hand-coloured etching by naturalist John James Audubon, American White Pelican, fetched US$173,000, three times more than was expected, a Bonhams statement said.