RM Sotheby’s staged its Duemila Ruote sale last weekend in Milan, Italy, coinciding with the classic and sports car show the Milano AutoClassica, and was rewarded with the largest automotive-themed collection sale ever held in Europe. During approximately 30 hours of bidding, 817 lots of motor cars, motorcycles, bicycles, boats and automobilia — all from a single private collection, reportedly a government seizure — were sold before a packed house at the Fiera Milano, with sales totaling €51,263,270 million (US$54.85 million).
“It feels like we achieved the impossible here in Milan this week,” commented RM Sotheby’s Car Specialist Augustin Sabatié-Garat. “The logistical challenges involved with putting on this sale are mind-boggling, but we have risen to the challenge and achieved results that nobody could have anticipated. The auction venue alongside the Milano AutoClassica was busier than we have ever seen in a sale room.”
The collection’s 423 cars, many of which were appearing on the open market for the first time in decades, offered a range of ownership opportunities, driving countless bidding contests over the course of the three-day auction. Top sale honors went to a 1966 Ferrari 275 GTB/6C Alloy (above, Simone Caldirola photo courtesy of RM Sotheby’s), the first of just seven long-nose, six-carburetor, alloy body, torque tube 275 GTBs that generated an impressive winning bid of €3,416,000 (US$3,192 million). The top 10 sellers, with prices in Euros, are listed below:
- 1966 Ferrari 275 GTB/6C Alloy €3.416.000
- 2004 Maserati MC12 €3.024.000
- 1992 Ferrari F40 €1.030.400
- 1988 Porsche 959 ‘Komfort’ €1.008.000
- 1969 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Berlinetta ‘Plexi’ €873.600
- 1991 Lancia-Ferrari LC2 Group C €851.200
- 2005 Porsche Carrera GT €761.600
- 1969 Ferrari 365 GTC €739.200
- 1994 Bugatti EB110 GT €616.000
- 1996 Porsche 993 GT2 €616.000
Full results from RM Sotheby’s Duemila Ruote sale are available at www.rmsothebys.com.
