https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from France in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed A print from a classic "Tintin" comic book signed by American astronaut Buzz Aldrin fetched 33,800 euros ($37,250), triple the auction house's estimate, at a Paris sale on Saturday. https://www.thelocal.fr/20191124/tintin-print-signed-by-aldrin-triples-estimates-at-paris-auction Sun, 24 Nov 2019 11:57:42 +0100 tintin-print-signed-by-aldrin-triples-estimates-at-paris-auction A 150-year-old guillotine with "a few dents on the blade" was sold in Paris on Wednesday despite protests. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180711/sale-of-150-year-old-guillotine-divides-france Wed, 11 Jul 2018 18:41:30 +0200 sale-of-150-year-old-guillotine-divides-france Tucked away in a vaulted cellar of eastern France for eight generations, they may be the oldest bottles of wine available for purchase: three bottles of "Vin Jaune" (yellow wine) dating from 1774 which will go under the hammer on Saturday. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180524/three-bottles-of-1774-vintage-wine-on-sale-in-france Thu, 24 May 2018 10:19:31 +0200 three-bottles-of-1774-vintage-wine-on-sale-in-france Luxury furniture auctioned off by the legendary Ritz hotel in Paris sold for 7.3 million euros, a world record in the industry, auction house Artcurial said Saturday. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180422/frances-legendary-ritz-hotel-breaks-record-in-furniture-auction Sun, 22 Apr 2018 10:31:19 +0200 frances-legendary-ritz-hotel-breaks-record-in-furniture-auction A colour drawing of Tintin and his faithful canine companion Snowy sold at a Paris auction on Saturday for more than half a million euros. https://www.thelocal.fr/20171118/tintin-and-snowy-drawing-sells-for-500000 Sat, 18 Nov 2017 16:52:01 +0100 tintin-and-snowy-drawing-sells-for-500000 A Paris court on Tuesday jailed 35 ex-employees of the prestigious Drouot auction house for stealing valuable antiques and artworks in an insider racket thought to date back decades. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160906/dozens-jailed-for-insider-thefts-at-french-auction-house Tue, 06 Sep 2016 18:41:42 +0200 dozens-jailed-for-insider-thefts-at-french-auction-house Fancy buying a World War II tank? Then you need to go to a museum in Normandy, France, which is closing its doors and selling off its entire collection. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160822/who-wants-to-buy-a-tank-asks-french-museum Mon, 22 Aug 2016 18:56:49 +0200 who-wants-to-buy-a-tank-asks-french-museum Porters from Paris' most famous auction house went on trial Monday, accused of systematically stealing 250 tonnes of valuable antiques, jewels and artworks, including a Chagall painting and rare Ming dynasty porcelain. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160315/paris-auction-porters-stole-250-tonnes-of-valuables Tue, 15 Mar 2016 08:44:06 +0100 paris-auction-porters-stole-250-tonnes-of-valuables US billionaire and francophile Christopher Forbes' collection of artifacts from the life of Napoleon III and Napoleon Bonaparte's wedding certificate went under the hammer over the weekend, drawing numerous buyers and museums, French auction house Osenat said Sunday. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160307/france-buys-up-forbes-mammoth-napopleon-collection Mon, 07 Mar 2016 08:28:26 +0100 france-buys-up-forbes-mammoth-napopleon-collection Fashion mogul Pierre Berge raised millions for AIDS research on Friday as the first part of his renowned library went under the hammer in Paris. https://www.thelocal.fr/20151212/french-fashion-mogul-raises-millions-for-aids-research Sat, 12 Dec 2015 11:30:25 +0100 french-fashion-mogul-raises-millions-for-aids-research A treasure trove of extremely rare classic cars, discovered on a farm in western France last year after lying forgotten for almost 50 years, goes under the hammer this week where they are expected to fetch €16 million ($18 million). https://www.thelocal.fr/20150204/classic-cars-found-in-french-farm-set-for-auction Wed, 04 Feb 2015 13:22:00 +0100 classic-cars-found-in-french-farm-set-for-auction Some 250 sacred Native American, Eskimo and pre-Colombian artefacts went under the hammer in France on Monday despite strong opposition from the Navajo and Hopi tribes who travelled to Paris to try to halt the sale. https://www.thelocal.fr/20141216/native-american-sacred-masks-sold-in-france-despite-protests Tue, 16 Dec 2014 09:58:00 +0100 native-american-sacred-masks-sold-in-france-despite-protests A 600-year-old marble head, believed to be from a sculpture of French queen Jeanne de Bourbon, wife of Charles V, was auctioned off for €1.15 million ($1.3 million) in Paris this week. https://www.thelocal.fr/20141212/marble-head-of-french-queen-sells-for-1-million Fri, 12 Dec 2014 09:28:00 +0100 marble-head-of-french-queen-sells-for-1-million An original watercolour illustration from Antoine de Saint-Exupery's timeless classic "The Little Prince", one of the world's best-ever selling books, is to be auctioned in Paris next week. https://www.thelocal.fr/20141202/original-little-prince-watercolour-to-go-under-hammer Tue, 02 Dec 2014 09:55:00 +0100 original-little-prince-watercolour-to-go-under-hammer A South Korean chicken tycoon has spoken out about why he paid $2.2 million for Napoleon's hat, saying he can relate to many aspects of Napoleon's life. https://www.thelocal.fr/20141118/korean-chicken-mogul-buys-napoleons-hat Tue, 18 Nov 2014 10:35:00 +0100 korean-chicken-mogul-buys-napoleons-hat An auction of Native American masks originating from the Hopi tribe went ahead in Paris on Friday despite objections from the US embassy and members of the 18,000-strong Arizona community. https://www.thelocal.fr/20140628/native-american-mask-auction-draws-protests Sat, 28 Jun 2014 12:40:00 +0200 native-american-mask-auction-draws-protests An iconic "Water Lilies" painting by French artist Claude Monet sold for £31.7 million ($54 million, €39.7 million) at an art sale on Monday, the second-highest sum paid for his work on record. https://www.thelocal.fr/20140624/monet-water-lillies Tue, 24 Jun 2014 10:30:00 +0200 monet-water-lillies Italian dictator Benito Mussolini's official car, an Alfa Romeo convertible, has fetched €180,000($240,000) at auction in France, the auctioneer said Saturday. https://www.thelocal.fr/20140615/mussolinis-alfa-romeo-sold-at-french-auction Sun, 15 Jun 2014 09:34:26 +0200 mussolinis-alfa-romeo-sold-at-french-auction For the second time in a matter of weeks a French auction house has withdrawn from sale items of Nazi memorabilia following a protest from a anti-Semitism watchdog body. Pierre Bergé & Associés had been intending to sell a rare first edition of Hitler's "Mein Kampf". https://www.thelocal.fr/20140507/mein-kampf-french-auction-house-pulls Wed, 07 May 2014 18:19:00 +0200 mein-kampf-french-auction-house-pulls The original manuscript of one of Marquis De Sade's most notorious works "The 120 Days of Sodom" is back in France after an incredible journey that kicked off at the height of the French Revolution. https://www.thelocal.fr/20140403/depraved-de-sade-manuscript-finally-back-in-france-2 Thu, 03 Apr 2014 15:51:00 +0200 depraved-de-sade-manuscript-finally-back-in-france-2