Decades ago I had a Parisian boyfriend named Raoul. Raoul was a snob and a sophisticate and on Saturday afternoons he liked to meet up with his equally snobbish friends at Drouot (like him, his friends were journalists at Reuters or AFP – Agence France Presse.) I was invited to tag along.
I was far from being a sophisticate in those days. Before Drouot, the only auctions I had attended were in country barns in rural Ontario (growing up, my family had a weekend farm east of Toronto.)
Raoul had a penchant for Persian and Oriental rugs. These rugs below reminded me of him.
Look at these beautiful pressed flowers that are over a hundred years old.
Drouot is fun because anyone can just walk on in and attend the sales. Entrance is free. There are several rooms upstairs and sales occur simultaneously. There’s a lot of activity and people milling around. If you like beautiful, eclectic things and objects of historical value, I suggest that you go. Sales usually start at 2 p.m. Here below is the sale of postcards. A few years ago, a postcard dated October 1899 and signed Guillaume Apollinaire sold for 8,000 euros.
You can also bid via telephone and internet. Closest metro stop is Richelieu-Drouot on lines 8 and 9.
http://www.drouot.com/
Interesting post. I have never been to an auction at all – it’s just never come up in my life. This one sounds wonderful – like entering a household museum.
Oh, you must find an auction somewhere and attend. They’re fascinating and the buzz of people and the chant of the auctioneer adds to the whole atmosphere. I miss the country auctions I used to attend in the barns and farmhouses of rural Ontario.