Once, these objects filled the great houses of Europe’s aristocracy—items like a set of double-cased set of drawing instruments (est. $73,600-$114,400) that luxury goods maker Alphonse Giroux created in the 19th century for the Duchesse de Berry. Her collection forms the majority of the more than 1000 items that Sotheby’s will be offering in London later this week in a sale it’s calling “Noblesse Oblige.”
Another unusual lot at the April 14th sale is a French Parcel-gilt silver musical automaton ship model, dated 1821. Designed to roll and pitch above its choppy seas, it’s estimated at a steady $82,000-$131,00.
Read more at the Financial Times.
