PARIS, France (Reuters) — An astonishing collection of papers ranging from a handwritten account from a Titanic survivor to a manuscript written from prison by the Marquis de Sade is set to be auctioned in Paris.
The Aguttes auction house acquired the collection from bankrupt French company Aristophil, whose founder Gerard Lheritier was charged with fraud in 2015 after suspicions he ran a Ponzi-like scheme.
His company, which acquired some 130,000 pieces, was placed into liquidation by a court order. While the case has yet to be examined in court, Aguttes auction house has already been assigned the task of conserving and selling the works.
“There was a company which over many years offered to several investors — 18,000 people in total — the opportunity to invest in cultural goods, paintings, books, manuscripts, goods of a very, very high quality at expensive prices. They offered to keep these goods in a museum and promised a high rate of return,” auctioneer Claude Aguttes told Reuters TV on Thursday (November 23).
The upcoming auction on December 20 is the first of several over at least six years, and investors in Aristophil’s scheme will hope to reclaim some of their invested money.
French writer the Marquis de Sade’s 12-meter-long rolled manuscript known as ‘Le Rouleau de la Bastille’ is the central piece of the inaugural sale. The unique shape of the text of debauched novel ‘The 120 Days of Sodom’ meant Sade was able to hide his work behind a rock in his dungeon in Bastille prison. It is expected to fetch between four and six million euros ($4.7 million – $7.11 million).
Also up for auction is Titanic survivor Helen Churchill Candee’s firsthand testimony of her experience on board the fated ship, and which the auction house said inspired James Cameron’s 1997 film ‘Titanic.’ It is valued at 300,000 to 400,000 euros ($350,000 to $470,000).
On sale for the first time is French writer and philosopher Andre Breton’s manuscripts of his surrealist manifestos which provide a fascinating insight into the mindset of one of the 20th century’s most significant literary and artistic movements.
Works by revered French writers, including Honore de Balzac and Antoine de Saint-Exupery, are also among the collection, as well as a score from German composer Richard Wagner from his masterpiece ‘Colombus,’ completed in 1835.