The annual auction frenzy at Scottsdale, Arizona has been cranked up yet more with the announcement that Bonhams will join the fray by hosting a sale on 19 January.
Last year five auction houses, including RM, Gooding & Co, Russo & Steele, MotoeXotica and Barrett-Jackson sold 2234 classics for a mega £103m at the week-long extravaganza, which is regarded as the traditional kick-off for the international auction season.
And the London sale house is planning on making a dramatic entrance, having lined up a selection of pre-war exotics led by a 1929 Rolls-Royce Phantom I that once belonged to screen goddess Marlene Dietrich.
The Transformable Convertible sedan (estimate on request) was a gift from film director Josef von Sternberg of Paramount Studios following Dietrich’s success as femme fatale Lola Lola in the classic German/English film Der Blaue Engel. The Rolls also starred in Von Sternberg’s movie Morocco.
It will be joined by another Crewe product boasting celebrity provenance: a 1974 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow that was owned from new by artist Andy Warhol, while other 1920s and ’30s lots include a carrozzeria Sala–bodied 1924 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8 Torpedo Tourer and a 1932 Packard Model 904 Custom Convertible Victoria (estimates on request).
More affordable on the pre-war front is Bonhams’ 1936 Ford Model 68Deluxe Phaeton, which is expected to make $80-100,000, while a 1948 Pontiac Streamliner 'Woodie' Station Wagon and ’57 Chevrolet Bel Air Coupe are estimated to change hands for $70-90,000 and $55-65,000 espectively.
Also set to cross the block is a 1902 Oldsmobile Curved Dash Runabout that’s been entered with a $60-80,000 guide price.
